Things Aren't Always What They Seem
by Taiora Freak
Summary: Every time they leave her it feels like her heart's being ripped out of her chest. Sometimes you need someone to be there for you and help you along the way to recovery. EdxWinry, slight spoilers for the anime and maybe the movie.
1. Chapter 1: Recovery

**A/N: Hello again, this is my new Fullmetal Alchemist story. **

**I hope you enjoy reading it.**

**Warning: Slight spoilers for the anime and possibly movie in future chapters.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Fullmetal Alchemist, but I do own the pictures of Edward that's hanging on my wall. **

Summary: Every time they leave her it feels like her heart's being ripped out of her chest. Sometimes you need someone to be there for you and help you along the way to recovery. Life isn't always a dance on roses, especially in Winry Rockbell's case. She knew that loving someone meant painful waiting and secrets but she never thought it would lead her to such life threatening dangers.

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Chapter One: Recovery

The sun was shining bright and the birds sang their lovely morning songs to greet the warming sun. All in all it was the beginning of a great day in Resembool.

It was a quiet and peaceful morning except one thing though, "Edward Elric what have you done now?" The young mechanic stood over the helpless golden haired State Alchemist with a wrench in her hand. "How can you be so careless? I said I made it lighter, but that means you must be extra careful and don't put it under too much pressure." Winry scolded him. She sighed in defeat and sat down next to the boy on the ground taking his Automail arm in her small hands, her voice turning soft, "I'll fix it, but please don't do anything reckless next time okay? Promise me Ed. I don't won't you retuning injured every time you come home." She blinked away some tears that had made their way to her eyes and continued to work on the damaged Automail arm of his.

Edward didn't reply to her questions. How could he? Winry didn't know about the dangers Al and he was involved in and neither did she need to know. It would only endanger her to get more involved, so the best he could was give excuses to why he broke his Automail arm and leg.

"I'm sorry Ed, but you have to make do with this, I have to make a new arm. This one is busted really badly and besides you must have outgrown it by now." Her voice was kind and gentle for any outsider listening to their conversation, but to Edward's ears that was just a cover. He knew she had figured out he lied to her when he said his pity excuse for coming back with a ruined Automail. It shone through her voice; loneliness and distrust.

"Winry, you know you I trust you more than anything right?" He asked looking at her with those deep golden eyes.

She looked up from her notebook she was writing in and met his eyes, "Then how come you and Al never tell me what you're doing and how you got injured?" She asked, her voice soft, "You're always keeping things from me Ed, why is that?"

Edward searched is brain for the best answer, not the truth but something convincing. He couldn't tell her that they lied to her to keep her out of harm's way. If he did she would surely worry herself sick. So instead of enlighten her in their current situation the only answer he gave was "It's personal, you don't need to know." He turned his gaze downward not to see her gentle sky blue eyes turn sad.

"Oh I see…then I suppose…" Her voice trailed off and Winry went over to her workbench; starting on his new arm.

The silence once again found its way into the workshop and settled down. Edward with his temporarily arm grabbed an alchemy book and started turning the pages not really reading its containment. His eyes once in a while darted up from his book and landed on the hard working blond haired girl bent over his new Automail arm. Yes, it was defiantly better this way, not her knowing things that would put her in danger. He couldn't stand it if anything happened to her, he called it a strong bond between childhood friends, but deep in his heart he knew it was something more. He wouldn't admit it, but the blue eyed girl with sun colored haired, touched something in him no one ever had. She was his reason for coming back home and he hated himself for leaving her behind. He knew it hurt her every time Al and he left for Central, every time they went out that door and only came back injured. He knew her concern for them was more than they deserved.

He lowered his gaze when he saw Winry slowly turning around, "I need to go visit the town to get some new parts for your arm, I'll be back soon." She said in a hushed voice and walked towards the door, but before she reached the doorknob someone's hand was already there. She looked up and saw the arm's owner.

Edward observed her slow pace over to the door leading out to the outworn dirt path they had played on as children every day. Something was wrong with her movements and she didn't look like she usually did; she was much paler and her blue eyes were glossy. He rose from his place in the soft sofa and reached out for the doorknob before her.

"Ed what are you doing?" She asked and looked at him with glassy eyes.

"You aren't going anywhere like that. Are you feeling alright?" He asked while looking her up and down seeing the sweat droplets form on her pale skin and how her balance was becoming unsteady, so she had to lean against the wall behind her.

"Yes, why do you ask?" She questioned him, her voice a bit impatient. "I should really be going now if you want your Automail to be finished in three days." She said as she tried to push past him but Edward stood his place, his hand never leaving the doorknob.

"You don't look well at all Winry, but if your mind's set on buying those parts I'm going to come along. I don't want you to pass out on the road." He confirmed and released his grip on the door and opened it. Winry stepped past him not saying anything. Edward's mind managed to connect two and two and knew she was a little angry with him for lying to her again so he didn't push her start a conversation. He let her go some meters ahead of him, eyeing her every move. She was swaying slightly and once in a while wiped her forehead with her arm. He wanted take her back home immediately, but he knew Winry better than anyone and she was surely going to make a fuss out of it. So the best thing he could do was watch her from behind and make sure she came home in one piece.

He smiled inwardly, she really was a stubborn girl and like no other girl he had ever known. Other girls at her age were occupied with boys or make up and how they looked, but not Winry. She was so absorbed in her work as a mechanic to care about that kind of things. She was even a tomboy as a child. She, Al and he always played together and they never did anything girlish, but it didn't seem to bother Winry. Sure she had other girl friends, but she wasn't as much together with them as Al and he. But that made her Winry and not someone else and he appreciated her for her tomboyish attitude.

By now they had arrived in the little town. The sun was beginning to set in the west behind the great mountains, making the sky pink and orange. The stores were packing up for the day, but before the mechanic store closed Winry found the parts she missed and went to the storekeeper to pay for it.

"Oh, if it isn't our little busy bee Winry, fixing Edward's Automail again?" The old man behind the desk said and chuckled at his own remark.

"Yes I am." She threw Edward a glance before she paid. "And he's been at it again, ruined the fine work I did."

"Aren't you the lucky one Ed? Having such a nice mechanic fix you every time you break something? I don't know how you do it, but you surly manage to destroy it completely." The storeowner said in a teasing tone.

"Heh…" Ed mumbled as he rubbed the back of his head with his left hand while smiling sheepishly.

"Thank you for the parts and the material sir, see you later and say hi to your wife from me will ya?" Winry asked as she left the store and their journey home began.

"Yeah, see you later Winry." He said and turned towards Edward. "And Edward it has been a great amount of time since I last saw you. It's good to see you again!" The shopkeeper exclaimed chuckling as he waved goodbye to Winry before adding, "You haven't grown an inch!"

"Don't call me short!" Edward yelled back at the man with a frustrated expression.

"And say hi to your brother Alphonse for me!" The cheerful man behind the desk said. Ignoring Edward's short temper he kept going, "I hope he has better luck with the growth."

"Who do you call a pipsqueak so small you can't even see through magnified glasses?" Ed screamed, getting angrier by the second.

"No one said that Ed." Winry answered, tired by his constant overreaction. She waved goodbye and continued the long way back to the warm yellow house she called home.

Ed turned around, following behind Winry. His anger vanished in a flash when he saw how her arms slowly lost their hold on the heavy bag and how she had to stop to take a breath before lifting the bag up again. He saw how she stumbled and lost her balance, the sweat droplets on her skin and how her blond hair was clinging to her pale face. He ran up to her, offering to take the bag. She nodded and gave him the bag full of parts and materials for making Automail.

Winry had to admit it was good to have the extra weight of the bag out of her tired hands. She stretched her arms out in front of her and then over her head to loosen the knots that had formed in her shoulders. She gave a low sigh when she saw the long road in front of them. She was so tired and didn't feel well at all and it was a long way home. She took a deep breath and continued up the dirt path swaying a little from lack of sleep and balance. She had been up for three days straight now to finish fixing the broken Automail leg for a customer who had visited from Youswell. His order was urgent because there were few trains leaving Resembool to go all the way to Youswell. And her client had a pregnant wife he had to leave behind and wanted to get home as fast as possible. He had heard of a young promising mechanic in Resembool and since the mechanic he got his leg from had passed away he needed to find someone else. So Winry had worked hard to build a new leg for him since the old one was as good as scrap metal. She managed to finish in time and her client was very pleased with her handiwork. She had planned on taking a well needed rest but that's when Edward showed up with is broken Automail arm and outgrown leg. So she hadn't been able to get some rest. If she had told Ed about her three days without rest he would immediately send her to bed, but she knew he needed his Automail fixed fast, so he and Al could continue their search to get their body's back. She knew Edward hated himself for what had happened to his brother Alphonse, so the only thing she could do to help them on their journey was to make the best Automail possible. She wanted to have them home again safe and sound, both in their old bodies, wearing their carefree smiles again, free of all concern. One day she would see both of them smile like that again, a real smile free of sorrow and guilt.

She was so caught up in her thoughts that she didn't see that her pace had slowed down and Edward was far in front of her. She tried to get her legs to go faster but they wouldn't listen to her, instead they began to fail her. She could feel they were trembling just like her hands were. Her head began to throb and she could feel the sweat on her body. She put a hand to her forehead and indeed it turned hot, warmed up from her feverish forehead. Ed was right she was sick, she had felt it from the start of this beautiful day, but shrugged the feeling of saying she had worked to do when she should have stayed in bed. She concentrated on taking one step at a time, slowly making her way back home.

The sun had set and the sky was turning black, soon stars were shinning on the early night sky. Edward could see the Rockbell's house now. He looked back but saw nobody. He dropped the bag he was holding and ran down the road he just had walked. Winry was gone. He could swear she was right behind him the last time he checked. His mind filled with unwanted pictured of a hurt Winry. He didn't want her in any sort of danger. He nearly lost her four years ago in Central to Barry the Chopper. Through all the frightening things he had been through, that was one of the worst. That and when they tried Human Transmutation to bring their mother back. He was so afraid he had lost his little brother and in a desperate move to get him back he offered all he had left; his heart, mind and body to get his brother back. It worked and Edward managed to attach Al's soul to an armor standing in the corner in the basement of their house. In the attempt to bring their loving mother back Ed lost his leg and right after, he used his right arm as material to get his brother's soul back. He hated himself for the pain his brother now was in. Even though Alphonse couldn't feel physical pain Edward knew he felt the psychical pain of the loss of feeling things like happiness, love and even bleakness. He couldn't feel the chill of the wind or the hot summer days. Edward knew Al was suffering and wanted to restore his body and get him out of the armor he now subsists in.

And now Winry was missing. He continued down the dirt road and eventually saw a slim figure lying on the cold ground. His concern only grew at he recognized the blond hair swaying in the chilly breeze. His worst fears came to mind but vanished quickly only to be replaced with others. He didn't see any blood so she wasn't hurt, but her fair skin was white as a sheet and her face was filled with shinny sweat droplets. He lifted her up in his arms. His right arm went around her waist and the other supporting her back. Her head was leaning against his chest. He could feel the heat from her forehead through his cloths and began running to Pinako Rockbell's house.

Edward burst through the door panting after the long run. Pinako and Al came out from the workshop to see what all the commotion was about. When they saw Edward with Winry in his arms they assumed the worst but Ed quickly told them she wasn't hurt but had a very high fever. Pinako called the doctor and told Edward to put her granddaughter in bed and sent Al up to get a cold bath started to cool her down.

Edward carried Winry up to her room and gently laid her down on the bed. He put his flesh hand on her forehead and was taken aback by how warm she was. He sat down on her bedside and brushed tenderly away the stray hairs from her wet face. Her breathing was faint and her breaths were small but came rapidly, making her chest rise and lower much faster than normal. Her thin body looked so fragile compared to his own. Her hands were so small and yet so powerful with a wrench in them. He remembered it to well, every time he came back with a ruined arm or leg he was always greeted by her wrench. But after her frustration over the battered Automail she always smiled at him and said, "Well then, we just have to fix you up." while playing with her wrench. He smiled at the memory, but his smiled vanished when he looked down on the sick girl. She shouldn't have gone to town, he should have stopped her. Why didn't he? Oh that was easy, she had her mind set on going and no one can stop Winry Rockbell when she set's her mind to something. But this time he should have stopped her. He saw she was sick when he arrived but chose to ignore it, and then she had gotten worse and he allowed her to go all the way to town to by material to fix his Automails. His guilt was growing worse by the minute. It was so much he could have done to prevent this from happening. He looked down on the feverish girl lying on the bed again.

"I'm so sorry Winry." He whispered to her before he rose from the bed, "I should have known you were pushing yourself to hard." Just as he was about to take a step a warm hand grabbed his metal arm.

"Don't go Ed, please stay with me for a little while longer." Winry's voice was so feeble it hurt his ears. She usually had a clear and strong voice, but now it was so infirm.

Her grip on his hand was so weak but he knew it was all she managed to put into those trembling hands. He went back to her side and sat down. Winry still held his hand and a light blush spread across his cheeks.

"Feels good," she said as she put his metal hand to her forehead.

"How do you feel Winry?" He asked with his hand still on her warm forehead.

"Well, I've been bett…" Her answer was cut short by a raid of coughs.

Edward helped her sit up and stroke her back as she continued to cough. He was afraid. Even if he wouldn't admit it, he was terrified. Their mother had caught an illness right before she died and it too began with fever and then coughing. He remembered it clearly; Alphonse and he were running home with some newly bought vegetables to give their mom. It was when they run in the front door they found her. She was lying unconscious on the ground. Her face covered in sweat by the fever. It was soon after that she died. It wasn't only the sickness to blame but their father. One day he just left them. Their mother Trisha was broken. She loved their father Hohenheim so much and he just left them. Edward could feel his blood boil at the thought of that bastard. He was soon brought out of his thought by Winry's small voice, "Ed where's the bag with the materials I need to make you a new arm and fix your leg?"

"I think it's still on the road somewhere. I dropped it as soon as I noticed you were gone. You know you should have told me you were sick. I could have gone by myself to buy the stuff you need." He said in a calm voice while fiddling with his shirt.

"You idiot! How could you just drop it? I need those to fix you and it was the last the storeowner had left. Do you know what that's means Ed? If you don't go out there and find it, you will have to wait until the next delivery of material from Rush Valley!" She exclaimed while throwing her hands in the air at his carefree attitude towards her precious Automail.

Edward blew his bangs out of his face and shook his head. "That's not important right now Winry. The only thing you should worry about is your recovery. I'll go look for it when Pinako comes to up to cool you off with a bath." He said and chuckled slightly at her frustrated face. Even though she was burning up she still worried about not being able to make him his Automail. "You know it doesn't matter how long it'll take you to fix my arm and leg as long as you recover from this sickness, and I won't let you go down into your workshop before that either." He looked down at her, his golden eyes meeting her glossy blue ones. He smiled his usual sheepish smile, "And beside I don't mind staying a little longer away from Colonel Sarcasm and his verbal abuse."

She laughed at him but was cut short by another fit of coughs. Edward continued to stroke her back with a concerned look on his face.

"Don't worry Ed, I'll be fine, remember you still need me." Winry said, a warm smile played on her weary face. She knew why he was so worried about her. She knew Trisha had the same kind of illness as she, but something was different, their father left them and broke their mother's heart into thousands tiny bits. She still had Ed. Even though it felt like her heart was being ripped out of her chest every time they left her to go back to Central. She hated seeing the train take them away from her, knowing their only return meant they had been involved in a fight and got beaten up pretty badly. In some ways Winry felt more like a mechanic than a childhood friend to the young State Alchemist. He only visited when his Automail needed maintenance and repairs. He never came by to see Granny or her.

Ed turned his head away from her and looked out the window. "We still needed her." His voice was low, nearly a whisper, but Winry heard him and immediately understood he meant his mother. She took his flesh hand in her warm ones and squeezed them reassuringly. He looked at her and smiled. He was about to say something when the door opened and Pinako stepped in with Al right behind her.

"Are you okay Winry?" Al asked, his voice filled with concern and if he had his normal body his eyes would have been covered in worry. He too hated seeing her like this. This was not their Winry. She would normally argue with Ed or work on some new project of hers down in the workshop. He walked slowly towards her bed as Edward rose from his seat at her side, letting Al take his place.

"I'm going to go look for your materials Winry" Ed said in a soft tone as he walked towards the door. "So now you just focus on getting better okay?" He turned around and sent her a kind smile before leaving the room.

Edward walked down the same road he had run a few hours ago. _To think such a nice day could be ruined so easily. She really means a lot to us even if we don't show it as much as she deserves. _He thought and looked down at his replacement Automail arm Winry had made him. It never failed him. Her Automail really was the best and she had proven it time after time. He knew she studied hard to make him the best Automail in Amestris. When he thought about it she really made their searched for the Philosopher's Stone much easier. But what did she get in return? Lies, but it was lies to keep her safe, even if it hurt her feelings. He never wanted to see her bleeding and in pain. Never would he let that happened. He would gladly give his life to protect her and he knew Al would do the same. He could remember it like it was yesterday. They were still children and innocent back then. Not troubled by the world's chaos. They were running around playing all day out on the great green plains that made Resembool one of the most beautiful places in Amestris. Edward had been many places in his young life but nothing was like Resembool, the fresh air, the beautiful fields and the always cheerful town's people. This little place made up from grassy fields filled with flowers was a paradise; it was home, their home.

When Edward got back to the cozy yellow house he went straight to Winry's bedroom but was stopped by Pinako before he knocked on the door.

"The doctor left right before you got home and he said there wasn't much he could do for her. We just have to wait and see if her fever goes down and if not, we must call him again." Pinako informed him. She saw the worried look on the young Alchemist's face and smiled to herself. Even though he might not be ready to show it, she knew he had strong feelings for her granddaughter. "Don't worry yourself child Winry's a strong girl, she will be on her feet in no time." She patted Edward on his shoulders to comfort him.

"Yes I know, but it's just that mom died of the same kind of illness and… and if Winry leave us we don't know what to do." He answered as he looked down at his hands. He could use Alchemy and fight but he couldn't help her, the one that meant more to him than his own life. He loathed how helpless he was.

"Edward, she still has you and Alphonse, and besides all she needs is rest. She may not have told you this but right before you came she worked hard in three days, not resting at all. She had to finish her client's Automail, and to do so she stayed awake and hardly ate or drank. And then you came with your busted Automail. She knows you are in a hurry and will fix you as fast as she can. Therefore her body is worn out and need its rest." Pinako told him before she walked past him and down into the kitchen.

_Stupid Winry, it's so typical her to take care of other's needs instead of her own._ Edward thought as he made his way back to her room and gently knocked on the door. He heard Winry's small voice say come in and stepped into her room.

Winry lay in her bed her nightgown clung to her due to the sweat that drenched her body. She gave him a faint smile signaling with her hand for him to come to her. She patted the bedside and Edward sat down carefully. He placed his flesh hand on her forehead to feel how high her fever was.

Winry sighed as he placed his hand on her burning forehead, "You don't have to worry Ed" She said in a reassuring voice. "It's just a fever, I'll be fine."

"You idiot, why didn't you tell me you overworked yourself? You know I can wait." He asked and shuffled her slightly in the shoulder.

"Because I know you and Al are in a hurry to get your bodies back and I don't want to prolong you're your suffering." She answered as she looked at him with sky blue eyes while taking his metal arm once again to her forehead.

Edward saw her eyes suddenly lit up and looked at her with a quizzical look on his face.

"Did you find the material?" Winry asked, looking straight at him.

He sighed and nodded. "Yes I did, so now you can relax, see?" He showed her the bag full of parts and wires.

He knew she was getting tired by the way her eyelids closed and opened and decided to leave. He stood up and said goodnight without a protest from Winry. He closed the door behind him and looked up at Al's temporarily body.

"Is she feeling any better?" Al asked, his voice filled with concern. "I hope she will recover soon."

"Yeah I think so. She was able to talk about Automail so I think she will be just fine, she just needs rest." Edward answered his younger brother.

The next day past without much change. Winry slept almost all day so the Elric brothers went to their old house and visited their mother's grave. They got back late afternoon with a bunch of daisies to Winry.

On the third day things were finally starting to look better. Winry's fever had vanished over the night and she was once again on her feet, a little unbalanced. Edward had prevented her from working so she was sitting in the sofa reading a book about Automail. The day was slowly fading away and the daylight was replaced with the darkness of the night. Winry looked up from her book and called out for Edward. The house was completely silent so she rose from her seat to go turn on the lantern that would guide Ed and Al home. She knew they would be able to find the way back without her lantern, but she had always done it and she knew they appreciated it. Their mother had done it while she was alive, so when she passed away Winry took over the job of guiding them home.

Winry opened the door to her balcony and surveyed the open plains filled with flowers. The smell of daisies reached her nostrils. She closed her eyes and let her mind drift back in time, back to a time without worry; their childhood.

A young Winry was chasing a golden haired boy over the grassy fields of Resembool. She had a wrench in her tiny hands ready to throw the minute opportunity strikes. The golden haired boy before her was guilty in opening his mouth and said something bad about her and therefore by her opinion, deserved a wrench to the head. She saw him stumble and fell with a loud thud in the overgrown grass. Winry saw this as a good opportunity to throw her wrench. It hit him hard in the head and he screamed out loud.

"Damnit Winry! Why did you do that?" He yelled at her as he placed a hand over the swelling spot, he could feel the bump slowly forming on his forehead.

"Because you deserved it stupid." She said and sat down beside him, her fair blond hair blowing in the warm summer breeze.

It was so long ago, a time without sorrow. They could play all day with their parents watching them, alive. Things first started to go downhill when her parents died in the war of Ishval, which was said to be started by a rebellion and some even said an officer of the military shot and killed an Ishvallen child by accident, but Winry had been told that it was a massacre. The Ishvallen's were sacrificed to be ingredients in making a Philosopher's stone. The same stone Edward and Alphonse were searching for. She was never quite the same after getting the news of their death. It was soon after that Trisha died due to an illness and heart broke. Ed and Al were broken and were set on bringing her back with Alchemy, using Human Transmutation which is strictly forbidden. It's the ultimate taboo in all Alchemy. Ed lost his right arm and left leg, Al his body. They are doing their best in trying to get their bodies back and therefore Edward became a State Alchemist, to get access to thousands of books full of knowledge about Alchemy. She sighed as she opened her eyes and was met with the sight of an open sky filled with twinkling stars. Back in the old days of their childhood they would always look up at the stars together. She wiped away a stray tear falling from her eye and turned on the lantern that would shine through the darkness as a beckon to get her friends safely home.

Winry walked over to her bed and collapsed on it. Her fever had broken, but she was still tired. She awoke some hours later by some noises coming from the kitchen. She quickly got up and found her wrench. She had it ready to hit someone just in case she needed to use it. She silently made her way through the dark hallway to the staircase and took one step at the time. When she was in the middle of the stairs her balance failed her and she was headed straight down the stairs. Winry readied her body for an impact with the hard floor but it never came. Instead two hands caught her waving ones and pulled her into a pair of strong arms which wrapped around her, keeping her from falling.

"I got you." Ed's voice rang in her ears. Winry stiffened at his sudden appearance and a wince escaped her mouth. She relaxed the moment she understood it was Edward that had caught her and it was he and Al who had been making those noises.

"Thank you Ed." She breathed, her voice was a bit shaken and her eyes reflected fright. "I honestly thought you were someone else." She sighed out loud and a blush spread across her face as she realized the position they were in. Edward had his arms around her waist and hers were behind his neck.

"It was nothing." He said as let go of her and rubbed the back of his neck, a pink blush forming on his cheeks.

"Oh, hi Winry, are you feeling any better?" Al asked as he came out from the kitchen, joining them.

"Much better than yesterday. I think by tomorrow I can begin working on your Automail Ed." She said and smiled at both of them before adding, "And then you will be able to continue your search for a way to restore your bod…" She was interrupted by a new fit of coughing. Her head began to throb and her knees gave under making her fall to the ground still coughing. Ed and Al were at her side in a millisecond, their faces covered in concern.

"Win are you…" Ed stopped midsentence at sight before him. Winry had covered her mouth with her hands which were now covered in blood. "Al, get granny Pinako fast!"

Al retuned shortly after with Pinako at his heels. She kneeled down besides Ed and her granddaughter.

"Edward, Alphonse help her upstairs please."

They carefully managed to get her on unsteady legs. They supported her up the stairs and into her room, helping her into bed gently.

"You mustn't overexert yourself Winry. We have time to wait" Al reassured her as he sat down beside her on the bedside, taking one of her hands in his before adding, "We won't leave you alone until we see you are your old self again."

Edward went outside on the balcony to turn off the lantern Winry had so kindly turned on. When he came back in he was glad to see her coughing had died down and she was asleep. Al pulled the blanket tighter around her and they left the room quietly.

The next days past slowly, Winry was getting better but no one knew why she suddenly had a turn for the worse. Winry looked out the window, it was raining. The always clear blue sky was covered with heavy gray clouds. She could hear thunder someplace far away but it was coming closer to them. It was on days like this she got most of her work done in no time. With no sunshine to tempt her into going out, she work nonstop which of course she wasn't allowed to do now. She listened after sounds from the others but she was alone. They had gone into town. She could still remember Al saying he could stay home to take care of her, even Edward had told her he could stay. She had practically pushed them out of the house, telling them she would be just fine. Winry took this as an open invitation to get some work done. It had already gone five days since she'd fallen sick and she had to make Ed a new arm and do some adjustments to his leg.

She ran down the stairs eager to begin after some days absent from her favorite work. She threw on her working cloths, brought the bag with metal and wires and began on Ed's right arm. Her little paradise was punctured the second she heard Ed's voice calling her name. She quickly concealed her work and took off the overall she was wearing and called back to him.

"I'm here Ed." She closed the door to the workshop and went over to him. He looked at her with disapproval in his eyes.

"What were you doing in there?" He asked as he took a step closer and raised his hand. He quickly brushed away some oil that had planted itself on her cheek and showed his black finger to her, "And why is this here?"

"Well hmm, I was tidying the room. You should have seen it, it's was a mess and I'm tired of doing nothing." She said as she went over to the sofa and sat down. She picked up the book she had been reading and turned through the pages. Edward sighed in defeat and sat down beside her.

"Okay I give up. You are probably well enough to start working again, but don't overdo it okay?" He admitted and smiled at how fast she managed to jump out of the sofa and run into the workshop. He picked up the book se was looking at which had landed on the floor when Winry in true delight had scampered into her workshop. Of course it was a book about Automail and she had probably read it thousands times by the look of the outworn cover.

Edward rose from his seat and made his way into the workshop. He loved to watch Winry do what seemed like the most natural thing for her to do. He knew she was concentrated at the way he could see the metal reflecting in her oceanic eyes concentrated on the Automail. He'd actually never noticed it before, but whenever she got to a bolt or a screw that was particularly difficult to tighten or loosen she bit her lip. He saw the way her eyebrow frowned and a line of concentration was etched in her forehead as she blindly reached for the proper equipment on the table behind her, letting her hands find it by feel. She never once had to put the tool she grabbed back because it was the wrong one. By the end of the day her swift movements were slacken and she got a lot clumsier with the way she lost most of the equipment she grabbed. When she for the hundredth time bent down to grab the screwdriver from the floor her balance failed her and she was headed straight for the cold stone floor but before she made impact with the hard ground Edward grabbed her arms and straightened her up. "I think you should get some rest now Winry." He said as he bent down and grabbed the screwdriver and laid it in its rightful place before looking at her again. "You look tired."

Winry looked at the clock on the wall and yawned before saying, "Yeah, I think your right. It is pretty late after all." She walked back to her workbench to put away her half done Automail arm. She looked at her own handiwork before putting it away with all the loose parts that still had to be connected to the machinery in the center of the arm to get the right signals to the fingers. She took off her work cloths and turned off the lights as they walked out of the room. They bid each other goodnight and went into their separate rooms to let sleep claim them.

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A/N: That's it for now. I promise the next chapter will be updated in a couple of days since the finals at school are over and it's soon summer break.

**Hope you like the story so far and enjoyed reading it. Please review! I appreciate it. Give me your opinions, suggestions and critics.**

**Bye for now Taiora Freak. **


	2. Chapter 2: Leaving

**A/N: Here's the next chapter, hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it.**

**Disclamer: I don't own Fullmetal Alchemist and if I did ****pigs would sprout wings, chocolate wouldn't be made of sugar, and it would be the end of the world as we know it.**

**Warning: Slight spoilers for the anime and possibly the movie in future chapters.**

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**Chapter 2: Leaving**

Edward awoke the next morning by knocking sounds originating from the room below. He stumbled out of bed and out the door, half sleepwalking downstairs only to see the workshop door open. He stepped in and saw Winry standing over her workbench. "You are up awfully early." He said while trying to rub the sleep out of his eyes, his voice husky and thick with sleep.

"Yeah I thought of a new combination of metals to make your arm stronger and I had to try it out." Winry Rockbell answered without turning around. She waved her hand, signaling him to come closer. "See," she held the arm up for him to look at it. "I put together Molybdenum to strengthen the steel and Titanium to enforce the pressure you can put it under just in case you choose to be as reckless as always and I finally used Chromium as protective plating for the other metals, since it doesn't rust easily. It's absolutely perfect!" She said blissfully while running a finger up and down her nice handiwork. She got no response from Edward and sent him a stern look, "You could at least pretend you're interested Ed!" She exclaimed a bit frustrated at the lack of enthusiasm in her childhood friend.

"Not everyone can be a mechanic geek!" Edward answered in a sharp tone.

"You're not the one to talk Alchemy freak!" Winry barked back as she put the Automail arm gently on her workbench. As she was about to spin around to face Edward ready for a fight she slipped on a tool lying on the stone floor. Edward grabbed her waving arms and pulled her up.

"You seem to have a habit slipping on things don't you?" He asked as he steadied her, brushing some stray strands of hair that had escaped her ponytail out of her face which by know contained a light blush. He picked the wrench up and added, "You should be more careful, you could have hit your head pretty bad if it had hit the floor."

"It's not like I did it on purpose you know." She answered in a slight annoyed voice as she took the wrench from his hand. She saw him back away as soon as he realized the wrench was no longer in his hand. "Don't worry Ed." She said between her giggles, "I won't hit you."

Edward laughed a nervous laugh as he slowly retreated back into the living room, leaving Winry to continue her work. The last glint he saw of her was her once again standing over the time-honored workbench and sent her a warm smile. He really appreciated the hard working mechanic more than he let on.

By the end of the day Winry had finished his Automail limbs and only the painful process of reattachment was left. She knew the process affected Edward more severely than most people, despite her best efforts to improve the nerve contacts. Every time she attached Edward's new limbs she knew he would get a fever. He always did, it wasn't normal and some part of her suspected, no feared, that it was his stubborn insistence of adjusting to the mechanical limbs within a year that had done some permanent damage. She felt so helpless seeing him in so much pain that made even strong, grown up men cry and scream in agony. But Edward kept quiet during the whole reconnecting process.

During the time when all his nerves were attached to the machinery, there would be no speaking. He didn't want her to hear the pain that weakened his voice. He didn't want her to worry. In the course of this painful process he thought of his brother, trapped in the suit of armor without sensations. Alphonse was in much more pain, so he overcame the pain every time he had to attach new Automail limbs. He did for his brother. He would restore Al's body if it meant sacrificing everything her had left, Alphonse would get his body back, so he could finally live a normal life.

Winry hated seeing Edward sweat in pain and would do anything to take his anguish away. She had a cold, damp cloth ready and laid it on his wet forehead. During this moments filled with sorrow and pain it was always quite. She didn't start a conversation, because she didn't want him to hear her voice crack with sorrow and concern. Instead she ran her fingers through his hair while he clenched the armrest as tightly as possible with his real hand.

When the whole ordeal was finally done Edward pulled himself to his feet, stumbling as best as he could to the couch, where Winry knew he would lie until the pain stopped and fever passed. He always did and every time Winry sat at his side, cooling him of and supporting him in his unconscious state. She never left his side, and she brushed away his sweat with a damp cloth. Lost in thought, Winry did not realize she was crying until she felt tears fall onto her legs. She quickly brushed them away with a trembling finger. She shut her eyes tight to stop the steadily flow of tears from leaving her eyes but it didn't work. The crystals were still falling from her sapphire eyes. She fought to keep her sobs silent lest she disturbed Edward's rest.

As the seconds turned into minutes and minutes developed into hours Winry sat there in silence, brushing the sweat away from Ed's forehead. The fever was beginning to break and he was breathing normally again, the second stage of the reattachment process was finally over. She let out a sigh of relief and the awareness of how tired she was descended on her. She could feel her eyelids slid together and she forcefully pulled them open. The only thing that's mattered right now was definitely not sleep, but be sure that Edward was as comfortable as he could be in his agonizing state.

She placed her thin hand on Ed's flesh arm, tracing the veins down towards his fingers. She blushed when he stirred under her gentle touch and she retracted her hand and averted her gaze downward, looking at the stone floor while the blush spread across her face.

Edward opened his golden eyes slowly, adjusting to the light. He knew the worst part of the process was over and he all that's was left was to get his strength back so Al and he could return to their search for the Philosopher's stone. Once his eyes were function properly and his senses returned, he saw Winry sitting beside him.

"Have you been sitting her the whole time Winry?" He asked gently while sitting up.

She nodded in return, her smile sheepish as her eyes shyly met his.

"You must be exhausted by now." He said in a kind voice, indicating thankfulness, "Go get some rest, you deserve it."

"Ed," Winry started, tugging shyly at her hair, "Don't leave without saying goodbye like you always do, okay?" She asked, looking straight at him with tired sky blue eyes.

"We won't, I promise." He answered as he gently took her hands in his and squeezed them, reassuring her they wouldn't leave without telling her goodbye.

Winry nodded her thanks and gave him a smile, which he returned with one of his own.

Winry awoke the next morning by a familiar voice behind her closed door, asking if she was still sleeping. She called out to young State Alchemist who she knew stood behind that door, granting him permission to enter. The first thing she saw was his blond hair and flashed him one of her trademark smiles. Edward walked towards her and sat down on the bedside while rubbing the back of his head with his right arm. She knew very well Edward hated saying goodbye, but she needed to hear him say those much needed words; say that they would come home again. She hated the feeling of not knowing if her childhood friends remembered her or if they would come back. She already knew Edward only came by when he needed repairs, but it was enough to make her happy. Seeing his face chased away every painful thought of forlornness and loneliness.

Seeing the emotions change in Winry's face he quickly understood she needed to hear these words he was about to say, but why was it so hard to let them slip through his lips like every other word? He looked at her with only kindness in his golden eyes. "Winry," he began but stopped the moment he saw fresh tears fall from those lovely blue eyes of hers. Edward carefully put his finger under her chin and lifted her head up to look at him. He smiled at her as he tucked her hair behind her ears. "Why are you crying?" He asked her as he lifted his hand to brush away the steadily flow of her tears. "I know you hate to see me and Al leave, but we have to, at least I have to. I'm not going to stop half way; I'm going to get his body back. So I'm sorry Winry, but will you wait for us to return home?" He gazed into her sapphire depths, knowing he was opening her healed wounds over and over again by leaving her.

"Ed," Winry finally said, her voice soft, "All this time I have been so afraid you and Alphonse never were going to come home, that you would forget about me and this place we all call home." She said, her voice breaking as more tears fell from her eyes, "I know you have to keep the promise you gave Al, but it's so hard to let you go when you finally made it back home." She cried into her hands.

Ed took the opportunity to wrap his arms around her, guiding her head to rest against his left shoulder. "Everything will be all right. I promise. Ok?" he asked her. When Winry didn't reply, he continued, "I won't say goodbye to you now because that will only mean we will never see each other again, so instead I say to you Winry, not goodbye, but until next time."

Winry pulled back far enough to see Ed's face; her eyes searched his and found nothing but truth in their golden depths. "What are you going to do now?" she asked, slowly untwining her arms from around his waist.

"We planned on going to Central. I'm sure Colonel Sarcasm is pretty irate by our absent by now." He answered, a sly smile playing on his face. "And besides we need to check up something at Central Library."

"Edward," Winry began and with a shuddering breath, she added, "That's great and all, but why would you never tell me what you two are really up to?" The tears began to fall again, and Winry bowed her head, unwilling to let Ed see the hurt in her eyes.

Silence crept upon them and neither of them knew what to say to each other. Edward was the first to break the unbearable silence between the two childhood friends. "Winry I…" He started but was interrupted by a despondent Winry.

"Is it that you don't trust me Ed or do you think I won't be able to bear the burden with you? She almost screamed out, her voice thick with hurt and tears. With a heartbreaking sigh she continued, "If that's your reasons Edward, I suggest you find yourself a new mechanic because without you knowing it, staying quiet hurts me more than you can possibly imagine and it worries me too. You don't even have a chance to guess how many times my mind have played your death before my eyes in every method possible to kill a human being." She rose from her bed in an attempt to get away from all the painful thoughts and Edward's hurt expression. But before she reached the door, a hand grabbed her wrist and before she knew what happened, a pair of warm arms wrapped themselves around her thin frame, pulling her into an embrace.

"I'm so sorry Winry." He said in the most heartwarming voice she had ever heard. He hugged her tighter to him and added, "I had no idea I hurt you so badly, and here I thought I did you a favor by not telling you. I wanted to prevent you from getting dragged into danger, but instead my actions led to more pain. I should have known."

She couldn't help the tears as they made tracks down her cheeks. She didn't know what to say to him. Ed had triggered something that she had closed deep in her heart and now the walls around her deep emotions had crumbled, she had taken it all out on him. She felt so rotten for saying those things to him even though she knew he had a heavy burden resting on his tiny shoulders.

"I'm sorry for yelling at you Ed. I don't know what made me do that." She whispered to him as she brushed away her tears.

"Winry," He began with a gentleness she never knew he had. He turned her around, so she was facing him. "You have nothing to be sorry for." He brushed back a stray strand of hair from her forehead and cupped her cheek, lifting her head so her sad blue eyes met his warm golden ones. He saw how deeply wounded she was and whished with his whole being, he could take the hurt away from her beautiful eyes and heart. He wanted to be the one healing her broken heart, but knew he needed to restore Al's body first and knew he would have to leave her time and time again. He saw the new tears form in her eyes and how she rapidly blinked to wipe them away.

"Oh Winry," he said, brushing another stray strand of hair from her face before continuing, "I know you hate to see us leave, it hurts you deeply to wave goodbye even if you wear that spurious smile. But I have to, even if I wanted to stay here, I have no choice but to go, you know that. But I just hope you will wait for us, for me, like you always have."

"Ed," Winry finally said, her voice tender, "I'll wait forever and more for you two to come back home, so just promise me you will return home one day."

"Then I promise you; Winry Rockbell, that I will return safely with Al by my side, in his human body." He vowed, his voice full of honesty and affectionate.

They were interrupted by Al's hollow voice, "Brother are you ready? We have to leave now if you wish to reach the train station in time."

Edward looked at Winry before answering his brother's question, "Okay Al, I'll be there right away."

"Well then I guess this is farewell for now…" Winey all but whispered, afraid her voice would fail her if she used her normal voice.

"I suppose it is." Edward confirmed, squeezing her hand one last time before letting go.

"I'll see you soon," he promised over his shoulder, leaving her behind again.

Winry could hear his footsteps vanish down the stairs and then the front door slammed shut. She opened the door to the balcony, stepping outside in the beautiful sunset. It was as if the sun had set the very clouds on fire, but Winry didn't notice this, her mind focusing on the two boys below her, walking away from the snug yellow house.

"Edward, Alphonse, come back soon ok? And don't forget your promise Ed!" She yelled after them, releasing all her emotions in one sentence while she let her tears rill freely down her red cheeks.

"I won't forget" Edward yelled back with warrant in his voice, reassuring Winry that he would come back one day.

But it was no different than any other time they had left. It reopened the newly healed wound in her heart. And just like last time she went in and lay down on her bed, crying tears of loneliness. She couldn't stop them once they started, so she just let them run their course and fell asleep with crystal tears streaming from her closed eyes.

Edward and Alphonse had just settled down in their seats when Al cleared his throat to get his distant brother's attention, "So what did you promise her?" Al asked with honest curiosity in his eyes.

Edward turned to his brother, "That we would return safely home once I've restored your body." He answered in a quiet voice that Al didn't overlook.

"It's not like you acting this way brother. Is something wrong?" Al asked, concern filling his voice.

"It's just that I'm afraid… I'm afraid of leaving Winry in that state. She was completely broken Al! I have never seen her cry so much. And I have left her so many times." With a shuddering breath, he added, "I'm no better than our father for leaving her."

"That's not true Ed and you know it!" Al affirmed in a tone that wasn't anything like the kindhearted Alphonse Edward knew.

Edward looked at Al with a surprised look, Al didn't often use his name and when he did, he was slightly irritated or wanted to prove his point and get it true Edward's thick head.

"And you know what?" Al asked, staring at his brother and without an answer from Ed he continued, "I think you should go back to Resembool and talk to Winry, ask her to come with us this time."

"Are you sure? What if something happens to her?" Ed asked as he averted his eyes away from Al and out the window.

"If something happens brother, we'll protect her with our life. I have known her all my life just like you brother and I too have noticed her crestfallen face." Al said with maturity in his voice. He looked Edward straight in the eyes and added, "She's hurting more than she lets on, and that's why I think it will do her good to come with us."

"Sometimes Al I wonder who's the older one." Ed said and laughed a sarcastic laugh before his features became serious again and with a sigh, he added, "Your right though, we should ask her to accompany us." He smiled at his brother and Edward return to his old self again. "Once we get of this train, we'll go straight back to Resembool." He said while watching the landscape pass by at high speed.

"Do you think Granny will be surprised to see us so soon?" Al asked as he picked up the book about Alchemy he was reading.

"Yes, I do and I can hear her bold remarks already." Ed answered before trying to imitate Pinako Rockbell, "Well, hello Edward. Have you ruined your Automail yet again? And this time at record speed. To me it doesn't look like you have gotten any taller since we last met a couple of hours ago." He sighed irritated, "You know what Al? Sometimes I think Granny enjoys tantalizing me." Ed complained looking up at Alphonse.

Al laughed at his brother's ignorance, "Brother that's just to show you she cares about you, just like when Winry throws a wrench at your head." He said, holding back a laugh.

Ed snorted at his brother's comment, "No Al, I'm pretty sure Winry's trying to kill me for ruin her lovely Automail." He said as a faint blush colored his face.

"If that's what you believe brother then I won't argue with you." Al muttered to himself before giving the book in his hands his full attention.

Back in Resembool Winry was still sleeping. Dreams about Edward flickered before her mind in her restless slumber. She had woken up more than once screaming his name. She quickly realized he was gone and she was alone in her dark room. The stars were twinkling on the black night sky. Winry loved watching them but not today. She was so tired from crying and soon sleep dragged her into another nightmare. Den lay besides her like she always did when Ed and Al left. She hated seeing her owner so crestfallen and did the best she could to comfort her. Den snuggled closer to Winry, trying to oust her nightmares away.

The next time Winry awoke from a nightmare drenched in sweat it was eleven p.m. She rose from her bed and walked slowly on trembling legs towards the balcony with Den at her side. She slid open the door carefully not to wake her grandmother and stepped outside in the chilly night air. She went straight towards her lantern and turned it one, the warm light calmed her shaken soul. She knew Ed and Al weren't coming back, but she always turned it on, waiting for them. She rested her head on her arms and slowly her eyelids closed, sleep claiming her once again, but this time it was a dreamless sleep not filled with horror and fear.

The road towards the Rockbell's house had never been so long before. Edward was worried about Winry and wanted to reassure himself that she was as alright as she could be. So he practically ran the whole way, but in his world seconds seemed like minutes, minutes seemed like hours. When the yellow house finally could be seen, he also saw the familiar light from Winry's lantern. He smiled a sad smile as he continued towards the warm light with Al at his side. None of them broke the silence between them but their thoughts were alike; Was Winry doing this every night until they returned?

Once they came closer a frame could be seen on the balcony. Edward realized quickly it was Winry's form resting besides the lantern and knew it was his fault yet again. He had to make the wrong things he had kept doing to her right and this time he was not leaving without her. These thoughts were in his mind as he stepped into the dark, quite house. He went straight upstairs towards Winry's room. When he opened her bedroom door he was met with the cold night air brushing against his exposed skin, sending chills down his spin. He saw Winry's sleeping form sitting in the chair on the balcony and walk silently towards her for not to wake her. Once he reached her he took of his jacket and put it gently around her exposed shoulders. She snuggled closer to it for warmth. Edward sat down beside her and turned off the blinking light. After a while he decided it was too cold to be outside and scooped her up in his arms, carrying her to the bed where he laid her down carefully before settling down on her bedside, holding her cool hand in his warm. He could feel sleep tugging at the back of his mind and he eventually let his eyelids close, resting his head on the bedside. Sleep soon claimed him into a dreamless slumber.

Winry's eyes shot open by yet another nightmare made from her deepest fears. She let her hand fall lightly to her side and was startled when it came in contact with something soft that didn't belong in her bed. The sunrise had started some time ago which made sunrays shine through her windows, making it lighter in her room. She looked downward only to see Edward's messy golden hair. First she thought her mind was playing a trick on her or it was just another dream, but as the time went by and Ed didn't vanish she considered the alternative to be that he must have come back, but why? It was around this time she saw his hand was holding hers and a blush crept upon her face. She didn't want to wake him consider his peaceful face so instead she brushed gently away his stray bangs covering his handsome face. He was beginning to stir under her tender touch and Winry immediately drew her hand back, her face flushing bright red.

Edward slowly opened his golden eyes and raised his head while yawning. He looked at Winry and blushed when he discovered his hand was still holding hers.

"Did I wake you?" Winry asked shyly while tugging at her hair.

"No you didn't." Edward answered affably as he rubbed the sleep out of his eyes. He rose to the ground with Winry right behind him. He opened the balcony door and stepped out into the beautiful sunrise which lit the sky on fire.

"Ed, why did you come back so sudden?" She asked, looking down before adding, "I thought you were going to continue your search without stop." She felt new tears in her eyes but quickly blinked them away.

Edward turned around so he could look at the person he had known all his 16 years. "I forgot something important." He replied, smiling sheepishly. He took Winry's hand in his and gazed into her blue eyes before continuing, "Winry I forgot to ask you if you want to come with us to Central?"

Winry looked dumbfounded at him. She couldn't comprehend what he just had asked. She tried to get her voice through her lips, but every time she opened her mouth no sound came out so instead she nodded and smiled heartwarming at him, letting a few tears of happiness leave her eyes.

Returning Winry's smile, Ed leaned forward, closing the mere inches between them as he touched his lips to hers. Winry froze, surprised, but relaxed again once she realized Ed was not going to pull away. Her arms found their way around his neck as his slipped around her waist, holding each other close, banishing all pain and healing all open wounds.

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A/N: I decided to stop it there.

**Hope you liked it and please review and give me your opinions, suggestions and critics.**

**I'm working on getting the next chapter finished as fast as I can so until then.**

**By for now Taiora Freak.**


	3. Chapter 3: Arrival

**A/N: Here's the next chapter, read and enjoy!**

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Chapter 3: Arrival

At the next day's arrival the trio said goodbye to Pinako Rockbell and headed for Resembool train station. As they walked down the all too familiar road an awkward silence crept upon them. Alphonse knew something had happened the night before, considering the shy look the two in front of him sent each other in secret. Al could do anything but smile at the ridiculous scene before him. Here two grown up teenagers were behaving like children. They didn't say a word to each other, but instead he saw Edward look at Winry when she was staring of into the grassy plains and when he noticed Winry turn her head he quickly averted his gaze only to let Winry be the one staring. It was hilarious and any outsider could clearly see that these two had deep affections for each other. Al gave a loud sigh and continued down the outworn dirt path. Once they brought their tickets, they settled down in their seats in the steal horse heading for Central.

"I can't wait to see Mr. Hughes and Miss Gracia and cute little Elysia!" Winry exclaimed as she sat down on the hard seat.

"Yes, it really has been a long time since we was in central and talked to Mr. Hughes hasn't it brother?" Al asked, trying to get his brother's attention.

Edward was staring out the window, ignorant to reality. His thought was set on finding the Philosopher's Stone and the Homunculi that were after them. He knew they put Winry in danger by taking her with them but he also knew she would have another breakdown if they didn't. So the only solution was to keep an extra close eye on his childhood friend. He risked a glance in Winry's direction, seeing her talk to Alphonse like what happened last night didn't occur at all. But Edward knew better, he knew she was thinking about it because of the glances she kept sending him. Ed himself couldn't quite comprehend what had happened. But it felt really good and right, his lips on hers. He blushed at the thought and his focused returned once again on the dangers lying ahead. He was soon brought out of his thoughts by a nudge from Al.

"What?" Ed asked in all honesty. He hadn't heard a word of their conversation and didn't have a clue what he had been asked. He looked at his brother with questionary eyes.

"I said it's been a long while since we visited Mr. Hughes." Al repeated to his distant brother.

Edward only nodded as a reply before spacing out again. Winry sat in silence watching the two brothers' puny conversation. She was positive she knew why Ed was so distant; it was because of her. She knew he didn't want to have her come along, but did it because of her emotional state. She was sure he and Al were doing something dangerous and Ed had admitted that he hadn't told her because of it could put her in danger and that's why he didn't want her tagging along. She would show them that she wouldn't be a burden. She would stay in Central with Mr. Hughes and his loving family, not bothering the Elric brothers. She would take care of herself so Edward didn't have to worry about her knowing. Yes, that was what she would do, but right now she was more focused on the beautiful yet mysterious boy before her. She knew once they got to Central she would have to say goodbye, so she had to cherish the little time she had left with her childhood friend. She stole a glance at the young State Alchemist sitting on the seat opposites her, looking out the window. He was plotting about something, that's she was sure of. He always had that look in his golden eyes when he was thinking on something important.

Winry moved uncomfortably in her seat, wondering how Edward and Alphonse managed to sit all those hours travelling in this steal horse. Edward saw Winry's annoyed face and understood quickly why. He had always known that she hated taking the train because of the damn hard seats that felt like granite. He smiled at the blue eyed girl before retuning back to his thoughts.

After sorting out her thoughts, Winry cleared her throat to get the Elric brother's attention. The mechanic could feel her heartbeat speed up and knew what she was about to say would get Edward angry.

"Eh, I was thinking that… eh, maybe I should leave you two alone when we get to Central." She breathed out with a nervous tone. Edward was about to interrupt but before he could Winry held up her finger, signaling that she would explain. "I knew you guys don't want me to tag along and therefore I planned on staying in Central for a while." She looked first at Al and then Ed before she added, "I won't be a burden to you and I'm sure I can stay at the Hughes'."

"Winry," Ed finally said, "We do want you to accompany us, but I'm only worried about putting you in danger." A blush settled on his face as he took her hand in his and looked her straight in the eyes before he continued, "You are not a burden Winry. It's just that I'm so very afraid of losing you."

"It's just as brother says Winry." Al said in a kind tone and if he had his body, he too would have a colored face. He took Winry's other hand in his gauntlet before adding, "You and Granny are our only family and if something happened to you we don't know what to do. You are the one that keeps us all together."

Winry could feel the tears in her eyes at the honesty in the boys' voices. She blinked them away and with a trembling voice she said, "Thank you, both of you. But I'm still holding onto my idea and besides I wanted to go to Central and check out the Automail shops." She could feel their hands squeeze hers and smiled at the brothers.

"You are so stubborn Winry, you know that?" Ed asked as he released her hand. "We are not leaving you behind in Central when we leave Winry." Edward stated determined.

Winry knew his words hid another meaning. He wouldn't admit it but she was sure the reason lied in their past; the first time she came to visit the Elric's after Ed had passed his State Alchemist Exam. She didn't push the matter any further so the rest of the train ride remained quite. Everyone was busy with their own stuff like reading, thinking and more reading.

Winry had just finished drawing a sketch of a new Automail when the speaker told them that Central was only an hour away. She packed her bag and straightened her ponytail which was messy from the long train ride. She gave a long sigh of thankfulness towards the speaker for giving the much wanted information that this bumpy train ride was finally over.

The Central train station was crowded as usual when the trio left the train, headed for the Military Office. When they was about half way Winry said she was going straight to the Hughes' home and went the opposite direction than the brothers. On her way towards the Hughes' apartment she made a quick stop to buy some apples. Winry had asked Miss Gracia if she could get her recipe to make apple-pie and she had been practicing it a few times. She wanted to make an apple-pie to Mr. Hughes to thank him for taking care of her and offering her a place to stay the last time she came to Central to fix Ed's busted Automail arm. He had also given her some words of advice when it came to the secretive attitude of the Elric brothers. All in all he had been a great pillar when Edward and she had a fight and she needed some comforting words and therefore Winry wanted to give him something in return.

On the other side of Central the Elric's were making their way through the corridors of the Military Office, looking for Lieutenant Colonel Maes Hughes when they spotted First Lieutenant Riza Hawkeye.

"Heh, Lieutenant Hawkeye?" Edward asked in honest surprise.

"Hey guys," Riza replied and took a step from the wall she was leaning on before she added, "It's been a while."

"If the Lieutenant's here, that's means so is…" Ed started but was interrupted by a too familiar voice.

"Thanks for waiting." Colonel Mustang said to Riza as he rounded the corner.

"Jepp, the Colonel." Edward said in a dejected voice filled with false delight.

"Well, hello Fullmetal." Roy Mustang greeted a little surprised.

"Colonel Mustang what are you doing in Central?" Ed asked with little enthusiasm.

"You didn't hear? I was transferred to this branch last month." Mustang answered in a bragging tone.

"Great." Ed commented, his voice thick with sarcasm.

"And you guys? What brings you here?" Roy asked, chocking the need to piss of the young State Alchemist.

"We're just doing a little information gathering and we were thinking that we'll pay Lieutenant Colonel Hughes a visit a little later today." Edward answered in a casual voice.

"Oh is that so? Well then I suppose I see you again soon Fullmetal." Mustang said and as he walked by Ed he added in a teasing tone, "And remember that you have a lot of reports to deliver."

"I know, it's not exactly easy to forget with you reminding me all the time." Edward retorted irritated by the Colonel's 'know it all smirk'. He turned around and sent Mustang's grinning back a scowl before turning back to Alphonse. "Come on Al, we have to find Hughes." He said in a serious tone, all kind of annoyance gone.

Winry had just reached the Hughes' apartment and was about to step in when a familiar voice called out to her.

"Oh, hello if it isn't Winry." Lieutenant Colonel Maes Hughes greeted.

"Hello Mr. Hughes. Hope I didn't choose the wrong time for a visit?" Winry asked while shaking his hand.

"Not at all, I bet Elysia will be happy to see you and you will be surprised at how cute my little angel is. Oh wait I have a picture!" Maes said as he brought a picture from his pocket and held it before Winry's eyes. "See? Isn't she the most beautiful darling in the whole world?" He bragged while he found some more pictures of his daughter.

Winry just stood there and nodded, never getting the opportunity to talk. Her mind wandered of to Ed and Al, wondering what they were doing and hoping they was okay and that Edward didn't do anything reckless.

"You think she takes after me don't you?" Maes asked but before Winry got any chance to answer he was at it again. She sighed quietly to herself and tugged at her hair while the man before her continued to brag about his loving wife and daughter until he saw the sky slowly turning a fiery crimson.

"Why don't we go in instead of standing out here?" Hughes insisted as he walked in the door with Winry right behind him, thanking whatever god that had helped her right now.

Once safely inside the Hughes' home Winry only saw a blur of red and deep blond rushing into her.

"Hi Sissi! I've missed you!" Elysia exclaimed in pure happiness as she hugged Winry's legs tightly to her.

"Hello Elysia," Winry greeted the cheerful child with a soft voice. She lifted her up and sat down on a chair with Elysia on her lap and added, "Nice to see you again."

Right then Maes' wife Gracia came into the room and greeted Winry with a warm smile. "It's been a while since we last saw you Winry. How have you been?" She asked as she sat down in the red sofa beside Maes.

"I've been just fine and by the look of it I assume you have been okay as well." Winry answered while playing with Elysia's deep blond hair.

Their conversation was cut short by a knock on the door. When Maes returned, Ed and Al followed behind him. Winry let out a breath she didn't know she was holding and sent Ed a warm welcoming smile and was met with the same. She could feel her heartbeat against her ribcage and a blush settled on her face.

On the opposite end of the room, Edward could hear his heartbeat speed up and the heat in his cheek. He looked away from Winry's blue eyes and his mind reminded him about that day which made their relationship jiggle on the edge of a knife. They hadn't talked about it and he didn't know if he had done the right thing or ruined their strong friendship that has been forged through many years and yet a single action can break. He had to talk to her sooner or later about it. He hated that they were almost avoiding each other. They hadn't even had a normal conversation with each other without one of them looking away in embarrassment. Something needed to be done and with the looks Winry sent him, she didn't reject him, which heartened him.

That evening went by like any other evenings with one exception though; this evening was filled with happiness and not worries. Winry had made one of the most delicious apple-pies Ed had tasted to pay Lieutenant Colonel Hughes back for his and his family's hospitality. The time had passed 11 p.m. when the trio left the Hughes' that evening. As they walked down the road which leads to their hotel, they didn't notice a shadow trailing them. Without sound the follower observed the group of three walking beneath him. He knew his planned was soon to be set in action. The only problem was that girl. The brothers had already been taken care of and with them gone his target was easy to take care of. After all, the human body is fragile and therefore is utterly easy to silence. As his mind was occupied with planning ahead he didn't have time to react at the sudden movement below. The girl was looking up at him but he was sure she didn't see much, maybe his frame. He hadn't been careful enough and that little brat had spotted him. He sighed and slipped back into the darkness, shaking of the urge to go down there and kill her right away.

Winry was sure she had seen someone up there a little while ago and she has had the feeling that someone has been stalking them since they left the Hughes family. She fastened her pace so she was right behind Edward, not feeling safe on the dark road.

Edward saw Winry's sudden change of attitude and became more aware of their surroundings. The streetlights were off in this particular street which made the alleyways darker and more threatening than usual. He also noticed Winry's gaze. She was constantly looking around her, searching for something. He realized something had frightened her from the terrified look in her normally calm blue eyes and the way she was walking really close to him. Edward slackened his pace so Winry was right beside him before he asked, "Is something wrong?"

"I'm not sure but I have had this feeling that someone has been following us from we left Mr. Hughes' home and until a little while ago. And my suspicion was right when I incidental looked up at that building over there." She said in with slight hesitation and pointed at the building that she had seen the shadow before she continued, "I can swear I so someone up there, looking down on us Ed."

"It's probably only your imagination Winry." Edward said as he let his eyes follow her finger. You're just being paranoid." He muttered under his breath when he didn't see anyone up there.

"What did you say Edward?" Winry asked in a stern voice as she hit him in the head with her wrench.

"Hey! What did you hit me for?" Ed shouted while rubbing his throbbing head.

"Because you deserved it and you know it." Winry retorted and began walking down the street while twirling her wrench around her index finger.

They continued in silence down the deserted street with no streetlights to lighten up the dark. Once in a while Winry would glace up at the tall buildings to check if there was someone up there and Edward would give remarks at how her imagination was playing tricks on her and he had some nice meetings with the silver wrench a couple of times. It was when they past a completely black alley that Winry heard something. She stopped and peeked in the eerie alley but being night, there wasn't any light to illuminate the path ahead. She shook her head and began jogging after Ed and Al. She came to a sudden stop when she felt someone's breath at the bottom of her neck.

Winry swiftly turned toward the dark alley, but saw no one. A sudden gust of chilly wind brushed past her, making her hair sway. As it past Winry's features changed from worried to utterly frighten. She could feel her knees get weak but forced them to support her. The wind had come with a message, a message to her from whoever was out there, watching her. She could feel the hair on her back risen and a quiver went down her spine as she recalled the whisper carried by the gust had said; "I'm watching you. There is nowhere to hide so don't feel too safe with your friends."

Winry shook her head to clear her mind and pushed her fright away. She took a defensive stand with the wrench at hand. "Who are you? And why are you following me?" Despite her best efforts to appear fearless, her voice gave out a bit of a quiver.

There was no response only the hiss of the chilly night breeze blowing through her blond hair. But Winry was sure of one thing though, she was sure she had heard that threatening whisper and the feel of the cold breath at her neck. She was brought out of her tremulous state by a light shake. She blinked a few times to adjust her eyes back to normal. She looked into a pair of golden orbs and felt a pair of hands at her shoulders. She blushed as she gazed into Edward's fetching golden eyes which now were reflecting anxiety. It was then she realized he'd been trying to get her mind back to reality for a while now without luck. She opened her mouth to say something but was cut short by Ed's comment.

"Dammit Winry! How many times have you thought to make me worry about you?" He asked and a pink flush spread across his face when he realized the words that had just slipped through his mouth.

"Calm down brother." Al interrupted, laying a hollow gauntlet on Ed's shoulder before he turned towards Winry. "Is something the matter Winry?" he asked in a soft yet worried voice.

Winry averted her gaze from Ed and looked at Al with scared blue eyes wondering if she should tell them or not. If she did Ed was sure to mock her and she wasn't in a mood for teasing right now. She looked up at the armor which contains Alphonse Elric's soul and in a calm covered voice said, "No, there's nothing wrong. I just thought I heard something and wanted to check it out." She smiled warmly at the huge yet gentle armor.

Even though being one-track minded Edward did easily see through Winry's calm façade. He knew something had shaken her up pretty badly but he had too much pride to admit that maybe she was right after all. He had insisted that it was her imagination triggered by her fear that made her see things and his stubbornness was too strong to just apologize to her. So instead he instinctively took his arm protectively around Winry's waist, holding her close. If there was someone out there he would not let them hurt Winry, not over his living body. They had to go through him to get her.

Alphonse had noticed Ed's sudden strange behavior and knew something was out of place and instantly became more alert. He knew this had something to do with Winry's change of emotions. Al understood she had tried to cover her voice but her fright had shone through and the warm smile she sent him was thick with dread. Even though he hadn't any senses he could still feel the tension in the air. It was like the world held its breath, waiting for something malicious to happen and by the look Ed sent him, he could feel it too. He stepped closer to Winry's left side so both brothers were at her side. Either of them wanted something to happen to their childhood friend and something didn't feel right about this silent night.

Edward cast a look at the girl walking beside him. He saw how she was shivering and how she pulled her black jacket closer to her slim body. He instantly took of his own and laid it gently around her small shoulders.

Winry could feel a warm fabric around her shoulders and looked up at the familiar red coat. She understood that Ed had seen her freezing and given her his coat. She sent him a grateful smile filled with kindness as she tightened the coat around her.

In the safety of the darkness someone was watching the trio head to their hotel. Once safely inside he back off, deeper into the shadows, his spiky hair swaying in the wind as he jumped from rooftop to rooftop, back to his and the others haunt. His mission was soon finished, only one little detail left. He laughed to himself and an evil grin formed on his lips.

Back in the hotel the brother's had just said goodnight to their childhood friend and gone into their own room. Winry was lying on her bed thinking about the incident some hours ago. She felt quivers go up and down her spine at the thought of the lurid whisper. She sighed loudly as she hid her face in the pillow. Oh, the person who had frightened her would surly pay when she found out who he was. She would teach him a lesson not to piss Winry Rockbell of! And with that in mind she let sleep lull her in.

On the other side of the wall Edward and Alphonse were having a conversation when they heard a scream originating from Winry's room. Fearing the worst they rushed into her room. Ed had transmuted his Automail arm into a spear to fight whoever was hurting Winry. As they ventured further into the hotel room they didn't see anyone. The silence was interrupted by another scream. They ran through the door and into Winry's temporarily bedroom. The sight that met them made them stop in shock. There was no intruder, only Winry having a terrible nightmare.

"Winry calmed down! It's me Edward!" Ed said, trying to wake the sleeping girl. He could see she was having a terrifying nightmare by the look of how she was fighting him in her sleep and the trails of tears leaking from out of the corner of her vibrant blue eyes. He shook her lightly but it didn't help at all. So instead of pinning her down or doing any of the sorts he just sat beside her, calling her name in a calm voice. After a while Winry slowly opened her eyes.

"…E-Ed…?" Her voice sounded raspy from all the yelling she had been doing. She also couldn't stop the flow of tears that cascaded like a raging river down her cheeks.

"Yes it's me. Al's gone to get you something to drink, he will be back soon." Edward said in a soothing voice. He realized then that this was not like him at all. When did he, The Fullmetal Alchemist behave like this? It was obvious, the answer lied practically right by his side; Winry. Winry was the one doing this to him, making him soft and worried. "Do you want to talk about it?" He asked, but at the confused look Winry gave him he added quickly, "Your nightmare I mean."

She was a little hesitant, at first, about talking to Ed about her nightmare. Edward sensed this and started to rub her back, a gesture he used to do when they were younger to coax her to tell him her worries.

"Well, hmm I was standing out in a green field by myself and in the next moment all the colors were gone and there was someone standing in front of me. I couldn't quite recognize him but his glare is something I'll never forget. I have never seen something so filled with wickedness." Winry told him in low voice, a little embarrassed about telling him this.

"What happened next?" Ed asked, coaxing her on while rubbing her back with a blush lingering on his cheeks.

"The scenery changes and I see you…" Her voice trailed off to nothing but a whisper when she continued, "I saw you Ed, lying on the ground, dead." She looked down, afraid to meet his eyes. She continued to observe her bed when she told him the rest, "After that I'm suddenly fighting for my life against your killer. It's the same guy from the field and that's when I heard your voice, guiding me back to reality." She lifted her head to look at Ed and was surprise to say the least. Edward just sat there on the bedside, unaffected by what she had told him.

"You idiot, do you think I will die so easily? He asked in a frustrated voice. He looked down at her and added, "And besides I can't die before I manage to bring Al's body back."

Just then Al entered the room. "Here you go Winry." Al said, giving Winry a glass of cold water.

"Thank you Al." Winry thanked Al before she took a sip.

"Well then I guess it's time for us to go back to our room and let Winry rest up." Edward said as he rose from her bedside. "We can't have you seeing things tomorrow too." He added under his breath.

"What did you say Ed?" Winry asked as she readied her wrench, but decided to lay it down carefully on the soft bed instead of hitting him with it.

Edward saw how her face fell and fright covered her normally happy features. "If you want Winry, you can sleep with us." He offered while flushing bright red.

"Is that okay with you Al?" Winry asked while tugging shyly at her hair.

"I see no problem with it and beside it's a lot easier to keep an eye on you in there." Al answered which earned a laugh from Winry.

Sometime later the trio was settled in one room. Since Al couldn't sleep he usually watched his brother sleep or read a book about Alchemy but right now he was looking at the couple lying in each bed, ignorant to one another's feelings. He grinned at them but it was at night like this he wished he had his normal body back. With a sigh he went back to his book, leaving the two sleeping forms alone.

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A/N: That's it for this time. Hope you enjoyed it and I hope that this chapter wasn't too boring.

**I would like to thank ****Poisoned Scarlet**** for reviewing my story and giving me tips making my story better and I also want to thank ****kicyslawa****, ****sashimigirl92**** and ****VeekaIzhanez**** for commenting my story.** **The next chapter will take little while to update since I'm going on vacation without internet connection, but as I will update as fast as I can.**

**By for now Taiora Freak.**


	4. Chapter 4: Danger

**A/N: I've finally finished the next chapter so here you go, read and enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: This goes for the rest of this story. I do not own Fullmetal Alchemist. **

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**Chapter 4: Danger**

Winry awoke the next morning by the sun rays shining through the window in the hotel room, signaling that it was time to get up and step into the new day lying ahead. She lay still for a moment, letting memories from last night flood back into her mind. Then she turned around a little in the bed she was temporarily sleeping in, which belonged to Alphonse, before lazily getting up and stretching her arms. She looked across the room, spotting Edward still sleeping with his left arm hanging down the bedside, but Al was nowhere to be seen. Winry walked over to Ed and gentle lifted his arm and placed it beside the sleeping youth. She flashed the tired form a warm smile before leaving the room quietly. Even though Ed was stubborn, reckless and sometimes just plain irritating she still had feelings for him and it was these feelings that made her stomach wrench in pain each time the boys left and came back injured or joyously shy whenever Edward and she got close to each other. She had always felt butterflies in her stomach whenever Ed talked to her or touched her but the butterflies had now turned into bats. Her heartbeat sped up every time she saw Ed looking at her with those golden eyes of his but she knew Ed was too focused on his goal that he didn't see her in the same light she saw him. Of course it did hurt a little but she was a strong girl and as long as she could just be by his side it would be okay.

Winry was brought out of her musings when she spotted something moving behind her. She turned around abruptly only to see the hallway she walked down a few seconds ago just as empty and quite as it was the second before. She began walking again, only this time a little faster. She wasn't sure what it was but maybe it was the same guy that stalked them last night. She wanted to find out just who this jerk really was and what his motives to follow them were. But at the same time a part of her brain told her to go back to the safety of the room, back to Edward, but the other part told her to track this bastard down and teach him a lesson for scaring her so much. Her mind was made up the second she lifted her head and looked up just in time to see the shadow disappear behind the corner. She fastened her pace and continued behind it, not sensing the dangerous aura it effused.

She regretted the choice the instant the door behind her closed and she heard the lock turn. She spun around, trying to unlock the door when she felt a chilly wind at her neck. She was about to turn when the words hit her with full force. She recognized it straight away, the way it made her heart skip a beat in fright and how her breath caught in her throat told her that it was just like yesterday. She could feel her hands trembling beside her and a quiver went down her spine. She tried the door one last time before running the other way, searching franticly for an exit or humans. But wherever she ran she couldn't see anyone and there were no exits. She could feel her muscle ache but pushed them harder, not letting them fail her now. Winry was sure she could sense someone behind her, chasing her through the dark halls. It was early she knew that but why was it so dark? The sun was still shining but to Winry it was like a blanket of darkness had shut the light out and she found herself running blindly through corridor after corridor in true panic. As she ran down the hallway Winry could feel something cool against her ankle, twining around it. She was about to scream when its hold on her ankle tightened and with true force dragged her feet away, making her lose her footing and fall to the hard ground. She hit the floor head first making her head ache terribly. Winry looked down her right leg only to see what looked like a thin black hand holding tightly around her numb ankle. But just as she touched the black hand it began to drag her down the hallway. She tried to tear the frightening black thing off but it only made its grip tighten. She tried to scream but her voice wouldn't listen so instead she let her hands searched franticly around her after something to grab onto, but only ended up scratching air. She continued this way until the feelings in her fingers were feeble. She was about to give up when the grip on her ankle loosened and then vanished completely. She jumped to her feet quickly only to archive a painful headache and a sore ankle. She fell to her knees, holding her aching ankle. She looked up at the sound of the voice she dreaded the most. Winry could barely make out a figure leaning on one side of the wall. From the looks of it, the person had on some dark clothing and wild hair that poked out everywhere.

"So we finally met eye to eye Winry Rockbell." He said in a voice filled with wickedness which sent quivers down Winry's spine. He walked towards her and grabbed her wrist, lifting her up to face him. Winry tried her best to fight him off but he was too strong. As she brought her free hand up to punch him he just grabbed it without breaking a sweat.

"What do you want with me?" Winry asked through knitted teeth as she felt her headache worsen tremendously.

"I'm afraid I can't tell you." He said in a mocking tone while lifting her higher in the air so her feet were mere inches from the ground. "It would ruin the plan."

Winry could feel her body go limb and fought to keep conscious. She figured out this was _his_ doing. She opened her mouth to say something when a lightning filled with pain shot through her body, making every nerve twist in pain. She screamed out in agony and let the tears cascade down her cheeks.

"Winry!" Someone was calling to her. Winry could hear the panicking voice growing louder with each word. "Winry wake up!" It yelled again now worry shone through along with desperation. Wake up what did the strange voice mean? She was awake and in the clutches of someone wanting to harm her. "Winry! Come back, please!" Winry's heart twisted in agony at the despair filled voice. She didn't know who was calling her and that frustrated her more than anything, since obvious he was worried about her. "Wake up Winry!" She was sure now, that voice belonged to someone dear to her but she couldn't remember. Her head felt so heavy and it was kind of hard to breath. "Winry!" The familiar voice reached her ears again and she clung to the voice, making it her pillar of strength to get out of this awful pain.

Winry's eyes shot open as she gasped for air. She could feel someone touch her left hand and shrieked away. She looked up to see Edward's golden eyes filled with concern. She got to her feet and spun around looking for the guy who had grabbed her wrist, but saw no one. The only person in the hallway besides her was Edward. She let out a terrified breath and her knees gave under. She sunk to the ground with tears falling from her eyes. Edward was beside her in a flash, grabbing her shoulders and gave them a gentle shake. "Winry what happened?"

At his question, she shyly turned her head away and gripped his hand with some firmness. '_This can't be easy for her, seeing how she's crying and shivering and that's not Winry at all.'_ Ed thought and with his other free hand, he turned her head and was shocked to see a horrified look etched on her normally happy features. She truly looked scared. "Hey, what's the matter? Answer me!" He didn't mean to sound forceful in his last sentence. But the way her face contorted like that, it made him frightened to the very core of his soul. "Winry!" She stayed like that, staring aimlessly into space as though thinking deeply about something. He shook her some more until, after a sudden shake of her nerves, she turned her attention back to Edward.

"It was horrible." Winry looked away from him while lowering her head so Ed couldn't see the steadily flow of her tears cascading down her cheeks. "I've never been so afraid in my life."

"Winry look at me." Edward said in a gentle yet stern voice. When he got her attention he asked, "What happen and why were you lying in the hallway?"

"I-I'm not sure Ed." Winry answered in a trembling voice, looking into his golden depths. "I remember awakening in your room and saw that Al was gone. Then I decided to find him but as I went down the corridor I thought I saw someone and I made up my made to follow him, since maybe he was the one that stalked us yesterday. I followed him into another hallway but the door closed just as I got through and I panicked and started running. And as I ran through corridor after corridor I knew someone was chasing me and then- and then someone got hold of my ank…" She stopped and took a deep breath trying to calm her nerves and hold the hysteria at bay before she continued, "And then someone grabbed my ankle and began dragging me back down the hallway. I looked down and saw there was a black hand holding my ankle in a death grip. I tried to find something to hold onto but there were nothing. But as suddenly as the black hand had grabbed my ankle it vanished and I heard his voice." Winry stopped, not wanting to remember the terrifying voice that sent quivers down her spine. She couldn't do anything to stop him from hurting her in her own dream. What if he got hold of her in the real world? At the thought her heartbeat sped up and her breaths came rapidly. She was brought out of her dreadful thoughts by Edward.

"Who did this to you Winry?" Ed asked, holding her slim wrist gently between his fingers. Winry looked up at him with quizzical eyes before looking down at her wrist questionary. She gasped in horror. '_The marks on my wrist are exactly the same from before, but I thought that it was just a dream, a nightmare.'_ She thought and looked up at Ed in fright.

"He did it, the one in my nightmares." Winry looked down at her trembling body while trying to steady her breathing. "He was in this too. No, maybe it wasn't a dream. How else can my wrist have a mark after his painful grip?" She asked no one in particular before she added, "he was here, in this building. He wants me Ed. He wants to harm me and do something to me. He didn't say what and when I asked he said it would ruin his plan if he spilled." She could feel Edward's arm encircle her trembling body, drawing her into an embrace.

"I will never let him take you Winry." Edward promised, holding her tightly to him.

Just then Al came walking around the corner and gasped at the sight of his brother and childhood friend. He knew something had happened the way Winry was shivering in Ed's arms. "What's wrong?" He asked, worry filled his voice as he knelt beside them.

"I'll tell you later, but now I have to ask you to go and check if you see anyone strange around here. The one Winry was talking about yesterday."

"You mean the one following us from the Hughes'?"

"Yes, that's the one. He's after Winry and will do anything to get her." Edward told his brother and Al quickly understood the danger in his words and went off searching for this new enemy.

Once he left, Ed returned his gaze to the crestfallen girl in his arms. He used his flesh hand to lift her face up from the crook of his neck. The tears that cascaded down her face were enough to break his heart and almost push him to tears. But he refused to break down, knowing Winry needed his strength most of all. "Listen to me Winry, we will get through this – together." He tried to reassure her as he felt her tears soak his shirt.

They sat like that for a while, not talking, just hugging each other. After some time Winry's sobs stopped and she was leaning tiredly on Edward. He helped her stand and supported her through the corridors, back to their hotel room. Winry would often clung tighter to him when they past a darken corner or a closed door, but she didn't say anything even though Edward knew she was terrified. He opened the white door and led her to his bed. He took of his jacket and laid it gently around her trembling shoulders before he sat down beside her. He was sure of one thing; the person that was hunting Winry had done something terrible to her, something that made her afraid of every little movement. It had to be something really tormentingly to leave her in that state. Edward knew Winry well and he knew that she wasn't frightened easily. She was one of the toughest humans he had ever known and to see her like this shock him to his very core.

The rest of the morning past by peacefully, the sun shone brightly on the blue sky and small white fluffy clouds drifted by slowly. Winry slept most of the time while Edward and Alphonse discussed what to do next. The plan was to confront Colonel Mustang and ask for his help even though it was a blow to Ed's pride he did it for Winry, wanting to get that sick bastard as far away from her as possible.

Winry opened her eyes for the second time that morning and stretched her sore arms out in front of her. She noticed the faint bruise on her right wrist and shuddered at the memory that took place only hours ago. She shook her head as to force the memory out and rose from the bed. Once standing she walked over to the closed door leading out into the little parlor, but before she reached the doorknob something at the wall left to her caught her attention. She turned around only to see herself staring back. But the girl in the mirror was pale and looked completely outworn. It couldn't be her; no way could she look so fragile. Winry blinked a few times to try and change the figure watching her with topaz blue eyes, but it didn't work. She sighed in defeat and retuned her attention towards the door and opened it, stepping into the little living room where Ed and Al sat in each couch discussing something. They stopped talking and turned towards her. Winry could see the tiredness shine through their warm eyes and went over to them.

"Let me guess, you haven't slept at all have you?" She said while looking straight at them as she sat down beside Ed in the couch. They didn't have to answer, she already knew the answer so instead of waiting for what she knew Winry asked, "So what are you going to do now?"

"We'll plan to go and talk to the Colonel and see if he may be willing to help us out a little." Ed answered in a monotone voice, not liking the idea of asking Mustang any favors.

"Okay, so what am I suppose to do, should I go with you or wait for you back here?" Winry asked, not wanting to stay all alone in this hotel after the terrifying incident a little while ago. But she didn't want to be a burden and she wanted to show them that she could take care of herself even though the thought of facing the dangerous guy again scared her to the very core.

"What do you think stupid?" Ed asked her, his golden eyes piercing into her blue ones.

Knowing his brother's hot temper Al interrupted before Edward could say anything else that would lead to an argument with Winry. "What brother is trying to say Winry," Al sent his brother a stern look before he added, "Is that we wouldn't leave you here alone with that guy lurking around here." He looked warmly at Winry and rose from his seat and walked slowly towards the door. "I'm going to check if he's still around the hotel before we leave for Head Quarters."

It was silent when the door clicked into place after Al left the room. Edward didn't know what to say and he knew that if he opened his mouth, something he didn't mean to say would come out. So it was best to stay silent for the time. He offered a look at the girl beside him. She looked so fragile, not like the Winry he knew from the old times back in Resembool. Maybe taking her to Central was a bad idea, but what about that guy that was after her. Was it because Ed had exposed her to him when they arrived in Central? Or would he travel all the way to Resembool to get her. Either option he couldn't possibly know so instead he settled for what he could do right now to keep her safe. He wouldn't let her out of his sight at all and he knew Al would keep her safe too. And something in him told him that his verbal abusing superior would give a helping hand too.

When Al got back they headed for Central HQ. The walk there didn't contain much conversation, more looking suspiciously around after signs of anyone trailing them. Once they reached the gate leading into the Head Quarter Ed took a deep breath before continuing through. In the hallway that led up to Roy's office they met First Lieutenant Riza Hawkeye holding some documents that needed the Colonel's signature.

"Hello Edward, nice to see you again." Riza said as she lifted the papers a little higher for not to lose them. "What brings you here today?"

"Well, we are going to ask the Colonel about some help finding our newest target." Ed answered in a serious tone, sending Winry a few looks.

"Oh I see, well then why don't you two go in and talk to him while I keep Miss Rockbell company?" Riza suggested in a warm tone, guiding Winry to some chairs standing against the wall.

"Thank you Lieutenant." He send Riza a grateful look and turned to Winry, "We'll be back soon." He told her before they walked into Roy's office.

But he hadn't seen it coming, not in a million years. There they stood in Roy Mustang's office in utter shock. But Edward soon got his voice back and took a step towards Mustang's desk.

"I'm not leaving Winry here unprotected, especially with that thing out there. Who knows when it will show up!" Ed yelled at his superior, his hands slammed against Mustang's counter.

It all started when Ed and Al ventured into Mustang's office. Roy sat in his chair looking through some paperwork when they walked in.

"Oh, hello Al. Where's your brother? Oh wait, there he is. Sorry, Fullmetal, I couldn't see you behind my paper work, seeing how you're so short and all. Roy started in, being his usual snide self. However, when his taunts failed to elicit the normal infuriated response from his subordinate, Roy began to get worried. "Seriously Fullmetal, what is it? You're never this quiet." He stopped and waited for Ed to speak.

"Colonel I'm here to ask you for a favor." Edward began but was interrupted by Mustang.

"Wait a minute! What? When do you ask for anything Fullmetal?" Roy asked in surprise as he lowered the paper he was looking at.

Ed could feel his nerves twist in offence but stayed calm. He decided to ignore the Colonel's question and continued where he was so rudely cut off, "Well as I was saying, I wanted to ask you to aid us in a search of someone who's after our friend Winry Rockbell." He looked up at his superior seeing Roy's eyebrow frown.

"What do you mean Fullmetal?" He asked and gave the young State Alchemist his full attention.

"We, I mean Winry encountered him for the first time yesterday night while we were walking to the hotel and for the second time this morning. He threatens her and says she's a part of his plan." Ed took a deep breath before continuing, "After every encounter she has with this psycho it leaves her in a state of utter fright and I can see she's not the same girl she was for a couple of days ago." He stared straight at Mustang while adding, "Therefore I'm asking you to help us find him before he fulfills his plan."

"I see, well then I suppose I should help you out Fullmetal." Roy said but his eyes darkened little as he gave Edward the paper he just had read.

"What! You're sending me away to some town out in who knows where!" Ed yelled in frustration.

"It's not my choice Fullmetal, the orders come from the higher ups. They want you to investigate the coalmines in Yuos Well. The Fürer himself recommended that you should go and take care of things and even if I wanted to I can't go against his orders." Mustang explained in a serious tone, looking at Edward.

"I'm not leaving Winry here unprotected, especially with that thing out there. Who knows when it will show up!" Ed yelled at his superior, his hands slammed against Mustang's counter.

"Relax Fullmetal, I'm not letting your girlfriend wander around without protection."

Al stood a few feet away from his brother. He knew Ed was worried about Winry and that this assignment came completely on the wrong time, but he couldn't help but think that Edward was being a little too overprotective. Shrugging he flashed his eyes at Ed, who was currently glaring daggers at his superior officer and shouting various insults, curse words, and numerous sentences along the lines of, "Who're you calling so short it takes a microscope to find him?", and "She's not my girlfriend, she's just my mechanic!", at the top of his lungs.

Mustang was only being saved by Al, who was trying to reason with his hot-tempered sibling. "Brother I'm sure the Colonel has something on his mind. He wouldn't let anything harm Winry, I'm sure of it." Al reassured his brother and looked at Mustang before he added, "And he's right you know, there's nothing he can do about the orders given to him."

"Oh, what are you planning Mustang?" Ed asked, not thrusting Roy 100 percent.

"She's staying with me Edward, so don't worry." Lieutenant Colonel Maes Hughes answered Edward's question as he walked in the door. "I promise I won't let anything happen to her Ed."

"Hughes, what are you doing here?" Edward asked slightly surprised at his sudden turn up.

"I decided to see what the commotion was about since I could hear you all the way down the hallway Ed." Maes explained in his usual cheerful tone. He took a seat in one of the empty chairs in front of Mustang's desk.

"The so called commotion is that the Colonel here plans on sending me somewhere far away when I have a psycho to find here in Central." Ed told Maes in an irritated tone while sending his superior officer looks of hatred. "And this sick bastard is after Winry:"

"I'm sure Roy has his reasons Edward and besides Miss Rockbell's stays with me."

"Somehow I just know you have been informed about this since you seem to know more than you let on." Ed turned his attention towards Mustang and looked him in the eyes, "So Colonel, how do you know so much?"

"Well Fullmetal, I'm shocked over your observation since you're so little and all." Mustang began but before he was able to form a word Edward interrupted him,

"Who are you calling _So_ small _You_ wanna _Crush_ like an _Ant_?" Ed exclaimed in pure aggravation.

Roy chose to ignore him, suppressing the need to humiliate the young Alchemist before him, "As I was about to say, we are looking for a person who has in some time now been murdering young girls. We have heard that he lure young girls by making himself look like their boyfriend or best friend and when he has them alone he interrogates them before killing them."

"Okay, what has that to do with the one I'm searching for?" Edward asked a little too impatient.

"Hold on a second Edward. This guy we call the Tiger has recently stopped murdering, we haven't found any victims as of late and I presume it stopped when you arrived in Central. So I suspect that he's searching for someone. Someone he wants or needs to do something for him and after hearing about your guy the timing and actions match up." He looked at Edward, acknowledging the fact that the blond teenager in front of him had risen from his chair and was now standing right in front of the desk, hands culled into fits, resting on the desk, his golden eyes filled with determination. "This is all a guess, but considering someone's after Miss Rockbell and the Tiger has stopped killing the exact same time you arrived in Central, it seems like we're after the same guy Fullmetal." He concluded calmly with his fingers crossed and elbows resting on the desk.

Edward on the other hand was not as calm as his superior officer. If this guy had been willing to kill to find Winry, he was certainly planning to do something to her or using her for something. But why Winry? She was just a young mechanic interested in prosthetics and Automail engineering. What was so special about her? The thoughts wandered around inside Ed's head but one thought was clearer and more important; he had to protect Winry by all costs.

"I'm sorry to say it Fullmetal but you have to get on the train as soon as possible and get your butt to Yous Well." Roy said calmly in his usual stern voice.

Edward was about to protest when Al stepped in dragging him towards the door as he said, "We understand Colonel and we'll do our best and return fast."

Before they disappeared out the door Maes yelled after them, "Don't worry about Winry Ed, I will take care of her." before he turned towards Roy, a serious look on his carefree face. "So what now Roy? This seems like a very dangerous person."

"We'll track him down before he does more damage." Roy cast a look at the files lying in front of him, "Hughes I expect you to take good care off Miss Rockbell and don't let anything happen to her."

"I know Roy, she's safe with me." Lieutenant Colonel Hughes answered, his voice and facial expression back to normal, but he could feel that something was sure to happen before they knew it.

Back in the hallway Winry and Riza sat, waiting for the Elric's to come back. Winry had told Riza about the strange guy wanting her. Riza had offered her some advices about self protect and showed a couple of moves to stop an wicked man from hurting her, by grabbing one or two passerby's that accidentally happened to pass them and perform a perfect punch to the face and kick in the gut. You can say that the two officers ran away pretty quickly, not wanting to stay another second with the dangerous First Lieutenant. Their conversation changed from self defense to a more woman like conversation. Riza had spotted Winry's earrings and asked who gave them to her since she had always seen the young mechanic wear them.

"They were my mother's." Winry looked down before she added in a somber voice, "She gave them to me before she and my dad went to the war in Ishval. It was the last I saw of her and I wear these as a memento of my mom." By now tears had formed in her blue eyes and she blink rapidly to hinder them from bursting over.

"I'm sorry Winry, I didn't mean to bring back sad memories." Riza apologized as she laid a supporting hand on the blond girl's shoulder.

"It's all right, it's not your fault. It's just that I never got to say goodbye and I only wish that they didn't have to die so young. They were only trying to help when someone killed them." She said while tugging at her hair to try and push the tears back.

"I know it don't sounds like much of consolation, but there are times when a soldier has to take a life, even when he doesn't understand why. The orders may not even make any sense at all." Riza said in a calm controlled voice, "That's the way it is when you're a soldier and it can be a stupid and terrible life."

"You're right it doesn't help much." Winry said with a somber voice. She looked up at Riza as she asked, "But why don't you quit if you don't like the way things are Riza?"

Riza stopped polishing her gun and looked at Winry, "Because there is someone I have to protect."

"Oh I see, it's just that I don't understand what drives a person to take another's life when they are only trying to help others."

"It's not my place to say Winry, I'm sorry."

"Don't be Riza, it was really nice talking to you." Winry saw the brother's come down the hall and said goodbye to Riza. They both walked away, Winry to meet Ed and Al and Riza to deliver the papers that needed Roy's signature. She knew getting him to sign would take a lot of patient and willpower. She walked into Roy's office and let the documents land on the desk with a loud thud, getting Roy's attention.

"I suggest you begin signing those reports sir." Riza said in a stern voice looking straight at Roy with the look, 'don't push me too far.' "Paperwork won't sign itself."

Mustang sighed in defeat. He knew not to mess with Hawkeye when she gave him that look. He began to sign and while he did he told her about their new information about the Tiger.

"Oh I see, so you have to leave again." Winry almost whispered afraid that her voice would fail her and break.

"Yes, it's the stupid Colonel's orders, but we'll be done in no time and return shortly, so don't worry Winry." Edward reassured her, the best he could. But he still couldn't settle down with leaving her here, vulnerable to this new evil enemy.

"Yeah and besides we won't leave you here alone unprotected, you're staying with Mr. Hughes family." Al said as he laid a gauntlet on her shoulder.

"What if he really is after me, what if I get the Hughes family involved in this? I can't forgive myself if something happen to either of them."

"It's okay Winry. We know Lieutenant Colonel Hughes very well and he's not dumb enough to get into dangerous situations, and besides the Military will help too. So don't worry about it okay?" Before Winry could reply to Al's question they heard an all too familiar voice.

"**Are you in need of assistance Edward Elric**?" Alex Louise Armstrong asked in a deep, booming, obnoxiously cheerful voice then captured Ed in one of his infamous, bone crushing hugs.

Once out of the hug and his breathing returned from strangled to normal Ed looked up at the muscular Major, "As a matter of fact yes we could use your help."

"Just tell me what it is and I'll do it." Armstrong said while flexing his muscles so hard his shirt tore.

"Could you come with us to Yous Well? We have been sent there on some mission to check out their coalmining operations. It could be helpful having you around Major." Edward said trying to persuade Armstrong to come join them with the thought of his talent of persuading people with his muscles.

"Of course I can help you out with your mission in Yous Well Edward." Armstrong said in his usual booming voice before flexing his muscles some more. "You know Edward, the art of helping someone in need has been passed down the Armstrong line for generations."

"That's great Major. We're leaving as fast as possible, probably the next train there." Ed told him and managed to get safely away from the bragging Major without any more lectures about what has been past down the Armstrong line for generation.

"Thanks to the Major we will be finished in Yous Well very quickly." Ed commented as they left Head Quarters and headed back to the hotel.

"What do you mean by that Ed?"

"You have seen his muscles and you know his attitude, just try imagining the Major in front of someone who don't know him and the Major is trying to persuade him into doing something else." Ed explained to Winry and smiled at Winry's expression when her mind pictured it before her. "He would just have to flex his muscles to get it his way. Trust me I have seen him do it."

"Okay, I see what you mean Ed." Winry said through her giggles.

Al who walked as silently as a huge armor could do didn't manage to keep silent through Ed's explanation and laughed along with Winry.

When they arrived at the train station Ed, Al and Armstrong boarded their train and found their seats. Winry and Maes Hughes stood on the platform saying goodbye.

"I see you in a little while and try not to do something reckless Edward." Winry sent Edward a stern yet warm look before turning to the person beside him, "Alphonse please take care of your brother and see to it that he doesn't get into trouble with his hot temper." She asked in a demanding tone while blushing a little.

"I promise Winry."

"And Edward", Winry began as she turned from Al to face Ed, "If you go and start fighting and wreck your automail again I don't know what I'll do to you."

"Why do you always suspect me to break it?" Edward yelled back with a slight frown.

"Because you break it like once a week." She sent him a 'you know it's true' look before she added, "And besides you always find some way to walk into a fight."

Just as Ed was about to start running his mouth and start sprouting foul words and insults he was interrupted by a booming voice, "Don't worry Miss Rockbell the boys are safe with me." Armstrong boomed while symbolizing his words by flexing his bulging muscles.

"Hey, I got a message from Roy." Lieutenant Maes Hughes told Ed as he took a step towards the train window.

"You mean the Colonol?" Edward asked looking slightly surprised.

"He said; 'Don't die under my command, you're enough of a pain without the paperwork.' That was it"

"Tell him 'Fine, there's no way I'm dying before you do you morally bankrupt Colonel with a god complex.'" Ed answered in an irritated tone. Then he turned to Winry. "See you soon." He hated farewells, he hated seeing her sad face but knew he would soon see her smiling again but something in his heart told him that something was about to happen which made leaving her here a whole lot worse. But Mustang and Hughes had promised to keep her from harm so he had to trust them.

"Yeah, see you soon and be careful."

"Aren't I always?" He yelled back over the roar of the train engine.

Then the train left Central train station and headed towards Yous Well leaving behind a young mechanic and a Lieutenant Colonel.

"We should probably head back home, Gracia's making dinner and it's soon ready." Maes said guiding Winry away from the crowded station. Misunderstanding her worried expression he said, "Don't worry Winry, I'll keep you safe."

Winry boggled and turned around to face him with a quizzical expression. "Oh, I'm not concerned about my safety Mr. Hughes." She said and blushed lightly while playing mindlessly with her hair.

"I understand, young love." Maes said aloud to himself, making Winry blush madly.

The day was coming to an end by the time Winry and Lieutenant Colonel Hughes made it back to Gracia and Elysia. Just as Winry walked through the open door, a cold gust brushed her, sending chills down her spine. She froze halfway and turned slowly around, eyes filled with fear. The hallway before her was completely empty. She could hear Gracia call her, saying that the dinner was ready but Winry didn't find her voice so no words left her mouth. She just stood there, staring down the empty, dead silent hallway. The voice she had come to know so well by now still sent shivers down her spine and made her heart beat faster. The words were clear enough; _I'm still watching, letting you live, but soon it will be all over for you_. She couldn't help but feel vulnerable and utterly frightened. She spun around and ran into the Hughes home with one thought on her mind; I need you Edward. She had told him about her nightmares but she hadn't told him about the eerie voice, telling her that her life was in his hands. She was sure about it, he was playing a sick twisted game with her which would end in his favor. He was the master of the game and however it ended he would still win. Winry was lying if she said she wasn't afraid for her life but she just didn't want to bother others and she would prove that she is a strong girl who can take care of herself. She didn't need anyone to rely on. She was an independent girl who was about to kick this sorry excuse for a creep's butt half way across Amestris. With that occupying her mind she gladly sat down to enjoy Gracia's delicious cooking.

A long way from Central, Edward was slowly pacing back and forth inside the little hotel room he and his brother sheared.

Al who was slowly getting more and more annoyed with his brother's constant enervating pacing looked up from the book he was trying to read, "brother please stop walking and sit down. I'm sure Winry's alright, so stop worrying so much."

"Sorry Al. It's just that I have this feeling that something bad is going to happen while we sit on our butt in this mining hole." Edward told his brother as he once again began pacing the room, constantly checking the time.

Alphonse sighed in defeat and turned his attention back to the book in his hands and began reading the same page for the thousand time that evening. Earlier that day they had checked out the area. Edward had noticed that one of the coal mining ore was being blocked. Thanks to the Strong Arm Alchemist, Alex Louise Armstrong, the mining ore was cleared in no time. Al could still recall when his brother came walking into the pet store after having spent a couple of hours with Armstrong;

"I got enough of that blow hard Al." Edward said in a tired voice as he sighed in boredom "He just goes on and on and on, the whole time he's bragging about his celestial family background, I'll rather try my luck in here with the cats."

Al just had to laugh at the memory of his brother's outburst and that he had come willingly into the pet store without being dragged in by him. Major Armstrong certainly had a way to get under Ed's skin just like the Colonel. He looked up again to see his brother still pacing back and forth and shock his head. '_Why won't he admit to himself that he has deep feelings for Winry? He's so hopeless, everyone can see it except himself.'_ Al thought before returning back to the book.

After some hours with nervous pacing, Edward left the room to get some fresh air into his lounges. He needed to get this mission over and done with as fast as possible so he could return to Central and continue tracking the guy who wanted Winry. Edward felt a warm sensation in his heart at the thought of the young mechanic waiting back in Central. But that feeling was quickly overcome by an indescribable feeling. It was the same feeling he had before, back in the hotel room with Al and the whole way here, the unmistakable feeling of danger. That something was about to happen, but not in Yous Well but somewhere else, to someone he cared for. Realization hit like a rock, Winry. Something was about to happen to Winry! Ed turned on his heels and sprinted back to Al.

Edward burst the door opened and ran into the room with a shocked Alphonse staring at him, "Al we have to go back to Central right now!" He grabbed his overcoat and suitcase but was stopped when a hollow gauntlet landed on his shoulder.

"What are you talking about brother?" Al asked bewildered, "we aren't finished here yet."

"I know that, but I also know that something horrible is going to happen to Winry if we don't get our butts in gear and go back now!"

"What's all the commotion about Edward Elric?" A deep booming voice could be heard from the doorway.

Ed and Al looked at Armstrong and Ed took a step toward him, a slightly look of horror present in his eyes. "We have an emergency Major." He began but before he could say anymore Armstrong interrupted,

"Don't say anymore Edward, I understand." He looked at Al's surprised face and then at Edward's slightly desperate eyes and came to a solution. "Edward and Alphonse Elric, you go back to Central while I remain here. This is an easy job so just leave it to me."

"Are you sure Major?" Alphonse asked as he walked towards his brother, ready to leave.

"Absolutely, do you doubt these muscles that have been passed down the Armstrong line for generation?" Armstrong asked and happily flexed his bulging muscles one or two times for good measure.

"That settles it then," Edward stated while giving Armstrong a thankful smile. "Al are you ready to leave?" Ed turned towards his brother and got a nod in return.

"Thank you Major." Al gave the massive bodybuilder a grateful smile before he walked after his brother.

When the Elric brother's arrived at Yous Well train station the sky had changed color from a worm golden to a fiery crimson. They managed to jump onto the last train headed for Central that day and sat down exhausted and a bit frightened. Edward shifted uncomfortable in his seat in pure restlessness. The hours spent on the train seemed like days and when they finally arrived at Central train station the sky had darkened slightly, but it was still a deep crimson making it blood red. Edward took a deep breath and took off running with Al right behind him towards the Hughes' home, where they hoped to find their childhood friend safe from harm.

Winry looked up at the blood red sky as she left the Hughes' home. She had told Miss Gracia that she wanted to take a little walk to calm her nerves and get some fresh air. She wouldn't be gone long and besides it was really a beautiful and warm day. She closed the door and headed down the stairs while giving the crimson sky a few glances in pure curiosity and wonder. The sky was really special today. Not ever had she seen a sky so red, making it almost scary. It was something about the blood red sky that made Winry feel kind of frightened but she couldn't put her finger on it so she brush the little feeling that was tugging at the back of her mind away, and continued down the alley. But it wasn't long before the warm summer breeze developed into a cold wind Winry knew too well. She spun around and ran as fast as her legs would carry her back to the safety of the Hughes' home. She regretted the reckless decision she had made about leaving the warm house without protection. She knew it was pretty useless trying to run away from someone who had such powers as to call forth a wind out from nothing or could infiltrate one's dreams and turned them into nightmares. If he really wanted to he could have easily have killed her a long time ago but he hadn't, so that helped a little to push the panic away. He wouldn't kill her just yet, but he could do so much more. She pushed her legs faster but the safety of houses wasn't even visible to her human eyes. One of many thoughts that whirled around in her mind was; 'why did I walk down this deserted alley in the first place?' But the answer came pretty fast, she had felt a sudden pull, guiding her into this dark alley with only the blood red sky to lighten up the deserted pathway. That's when she realized what the tugging feeling was; it was the feeling of bloodlust. It was like the sky reflected the hunter's need, the need of her follower. She could feel the blood flowing through her veins, her heartbeat fasten and her breath caught in her throat but she continued to push forward even how much her body wanted her, no told her to stop. But suddenly it all turned black and she hit the ground hard. And then the pain came flowing through her like lightning. She opened her eyes and gasp at the state she was in. Her hands were covered in blood. She held in a scream when a new shockwave of pain burst through her. She let her gaze fall downward to see a bleeding hole in her stomach. Blood was flowing out of it and she was getting dizzier by the minute. She shut her eyes tight and knitted her teeth at the unbearable pain.

"I told you, you are not safe wherever you are."

Winry quickly opened her eyes, trying to see where it came from but the voice seemed like coming from everywhere. "What do you want with me?" She asked for the second time without getting an answer to her question. "Answer me!"

Then she heard laughter, a sick evil laughter filled with ferocity. "I told you before that I couldn't say it."

"Yeah yeah, it would ruin the plan right?" Winry asked through knitted teeth, her voice ironic, "Well your plan wouldn't work so well when I'm dead."

"I'm not planning to kill you, let alone let you bleed to death." He laughed again, the sound coming from everywhere, reflecting like echoes all around in the little alley. "This is just a little reminder of my power and that if I want to, I can get to you anywhere I want." Then Winry saw him for the first time, stepping out of the safety of the shadows, walking slowly towards her. That spiky green hair and those light purple eyes filled with the pleasure of hurting. She was sure she had seen it somewhere before.

Then it hit her and Winry suddenly understood with gut-wrenching clarity what kind of sick twisted person that stood before her was. He was a homunculus.

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A/N: I hope you liked it and please review, their always welcome.

**I want to thank ****Poisoned Scarlet.**** for the review on chapter 3. I hope you enjoyed reading this chapter and I'm sorry for not making them in character but I will try harder in the next chapter.**

**I'm working on the next chapter but without internet connection it will take a little while to update, sorry. **

**Well that was it for now**

**Have a nice summer vacation,**

**Taiora Freak **


	5. Chapter 5: The Plan

**A/N: **It's finally here! After so long I've finally got my butt in gear and here I am providing you with a new chapter. But I got some bad news; Since, sadly the fantastic summer vacation is over and the hellhole we all call school has began again, I'm not going to update in quite some time because I have newly been dragged head first into the hectic day at High School. And everything's new and with a really bad sense of directions I have huge problems getting to the right classrooms and the teachers are completely different from out old teachers. So it's going to take some time getting used to the whole ordeal. And besides I have serious math problems. I can't understand a thing so that's going to occupy the rest of my little free time. So to all of you who hate math or have a brain disorder when it comes to equations, geometry and algebra you are not alone. So that's my reason for being an asshole and not update but please hang in there! Heh, I needed to get that of my chest. Sorry for the complaining, read and enjoy!

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Chapter 5: The Plan

The sky continued to turn deeper shades of purple as the Elric brother's ran through the empty streets of Central, towards the Hughes' home. When they finally reached it after what seemed like hours to Edward they didn't bother to use the doorbell. Gracia was sitting in one of the chairs watching the television with a sleeping Elysia on her lap when the Elric's came rushing into the living room.

"Oh, hi boys, nice to see you again." Gracia greeted them warmly as she rose from her seat to put Elysia in her bed.

"Hello Miss Gracia." Al said, voice low for not to disturb little Elysia.

"Have you seen Winry?" Edward asked in a slightly panicked voice, "It's very important that we find her."

"I haven't seen her since she left for a little walk a while ago." Gracia answered, worriedly.

That was enough to get Ed running out the door he just ran in. Al who stood stunned by his brother's fast sprint was quick to follow, but Gracia manage to tell him that her husband had gone out to look for her some time ago.

As Edward continued to run blindly down a deserted alley he couldn't hide the feeling of utter horror. He was terrified for losing her. It was something he hadn't felt before, no strike that he had felt it before, many years ago, back in his childhood. It was the same feeling he had when their mother passed away, but this time it was slightly different. Last time he was so young but now it was different somehow. The specific feeling was stronger and more mature. He couldn't describe it well but his heart was beating not just for him but for her as well, telling him if she di… no he wouldn't even think that thought. He only knew what his heart was telling him and right now Winry was in grave danger. He could hear his brother behind him. They were both afraid of losing their only family besides Pinako and Den.

Winry was trying her best to get away from him but the pain was too much. Every nerve in her body was telling her to run but her body wouldn't let her. She tried not to scream, she wouldn't give _him_ the pleasure of hearing her agony.

He stopped a few inches away from her, kneeling down to place a hand under her chin, lifting it up so she saw him in the eyes. "As much as I want to take you right now, I have to wait a little longer." He forcefully brushed some wet hair out of her blue eyes and lowered his head so his lips were right beside her left ear, "I hope to see you soon Winry Rockbell." His words were a whisper but still so threatening and malicious. "Aren't you the lucky one, your friends have come back for you. Well then, why won't you scream for them?" In one fast movement he was beside her, pushing his hand against her bleeding wound. The pain had become numbness by the time they had talked but now that he was pressing against it, the pain came back and Winry couldn't hold back a piercing scream. Tears cascaded like rivers from her eyes and she could barely see him as he brought his hand up to his face and licked away her blood. Then he slowly brushed away her tears and whispered, "I'll be back, remember that." before he disappeared into the shadows.

A screamed pierced the silent night. It sent shivers down Edward's spine and then he spotted her. She was lying motionless in what seemed like a dark kind of liquid. He forced his feet to carry him faster down the pathway. Once he reached her he knelt beside her and gently embraced her.

"Oh Winry, I'm so sorry! I shouldn't have left you alone." He tenderly cupped her cheek with one hand and with the other he supported her head. "I made a promise to you and I broke it. I promised to never let him harm you and what happen?"

Winry opened her eyes slowly and met a pair of golden ones. "Edward? What are you doing back so early?" She managed to choke out between ragged breaths.

"Winry, don't be an idiot." He began gently stroking her hair, "I came back because I know you were in danger."

"Don't blame yourself Ed, I was reckless." She stopped and took a deep painful breath before continuing, "I went out without saying so to Mr. Hughes. I'm sorry."

Edward saw the pain play across her features whenever she tried to talk or breath, "Winry," he began but came to an abrupt stop when his gaze fell on her bloody stomach, "What happened to you?"

"Brother, I think we should call an ambulance, she's bleeding badly." Alphonse said in a concerned voice as he too, knelt beside Winry.

"No, I don't think an ambulance is a good idea, considering Winry's afraid to death by them and besides what should we tell them?" Edward concluded as he tried to lift Winry carefully off the ground. He did it with all the care he could but the look of pain on her face was eloquent enough.

"But she's…"

"I know Al, but the best for Winry is if we can get her safely back to Gracia."

"You're right brother." Al agreed while gently helping his brother lift Winry of the ground, "We have to be careful in case she's hurt somewhere else too."

"I know Al." Ed said as he got Winry's arm around his neck, he took his Automail arm under her legs and the other supported her neck, letting her head rest against his chest, "What I like to know is who the bastard is that did this to her." Edward said furiously to his brother as they walked back to the Hughes' warm and always welcoming home.

Lieutenant Colonel Maes Hughes had searched for Winry all over Central and ended up empty handed. He was about to go home and check if she had found her way back safely when something caught his eye. He walked over and knelt beside a piece of paper. Maes unfolded it and blinked a couple of times to comprehend what it said. The letters was written in a messy handwriting but gave a clear message; Give her up if you know what's best for you and your loved ones.

Out of pure suspiciousness Maes looked around him for any signs of the person leaving behind the disquieting note. He was sure the message was for him and his observational brain figured out it was about Winry right away. In that instant he knew something had happened, something just told him to return home as fast as possible.

Maes Hughes had never been afraid before, not since his wife laid on the couch trying to bring his Elysia into life. Now he was worried about Gracia and his little darling Elysia and he had to get home before the message became truth.

The Lieutenant Colonel's heart skipped a beat when he saw the front door leading into his home wide open. He fastened his pace and ran through the open door. Once inside he called out for Gracia and let out a breath of pure relief when he heard her call for him. He hurried into the living room only to come to an abrupt stop at the sight before him. Winry was lying on the couch, blood covered her hands and abdomen. If it wasn't for her raspy breathing she looked dead. Her skin was scary white and her hair was damp with sweat, clinging to her face. Her eyes were closed for the most time but once in a while she opened them to look at Edward with glassy almost dead languorous blue eyes. It was heart wrenching to see the young mechanic in so much pain. The once cheerful girl he meet at Central hospital when she came to fix Ed's right arm after the incident at Lab 5, who he invited to stay with him and his family and came to love as a sister to Elysia, was now covered in blood and in deep pain. The worst part was that he had promised Edward and Roy, and they had trusted him 100 percent, to keep her safe but that promise was as good as dust now. He walked slowly towards the limb form lying on the couch, barely breathing. "I'm so sorry Winry." He stopped a few feet away from her. Gracia who had been tending to Winry's bleeding stomach walked over to her husband and laid a comforting arm around his waist.

"It's not your fault Mr. Hughes." Came Winry's weak voice from the couch. She tried to sit up but winced at the pain in her stomach. Edward was beside her, pushing her down gently. Winry opened her blank eyes and looked at Maes, "You have kept your promise and I thank you for that."

"No I haven't, I promised to look after you and I failed."

Winry was about to contradict Maes but a series of rough coughs rendered her speechless. She quickly covered her mouth with her hands. The pain in her reopened wound was overwhelming, it made tears form in her eyes as she continued to cough with one hand covering her mouth and the other clutching her abdomen. She took a deep breath which made her knit her teeth at the aching. She removed her hand from her mouth and froze. She stared at her palm, at the small blood puddle in the center of her hand.

Edward didn't know what to do, he was rendered helpless, watching Winry in this state of pain. He rubbed her back as she coughed. He could feel her froze when the coughing broke and leaned closer to her. He stared at her hand as she shakily brought it down to show him. His heart sank deeper into his stomach, blood. Why? Why was this happening to Winry?

Gracia was once again by Winry's side stopping the steady flow of blood gusting out of the newly reopened wound.

"Winry I'm going to ask to avoid coughing. I know it's difficult but more coughing will only lead to a reopening of your wound and since you absolutely not want to go to the hospital at any circumstances the best I can do is bandaging you up." She carefully wrapped another layer of bandage around Winry's stomach. "I'm not a doctor so I can't say how badly or life threatening your injury is, but Winry it's not looking good."

Winry only managed to smile weakly at Gracia before she slowly closed her eyes, letting exhaustion drag her into unconsciousness.

"Mommy, what's wrong with Sissi? Little Elysia asked as she came out of her bedroom, rubbing her eyes. She looked at Winry and her eyes became watery, "She's not looking so well."

Gracia placed some blankets over the young girl before walking over to a sleepy Elysia. "Winry's hurt dear, we must let her rest."

Elysia rubbed the tears away from her eyes before shooting Winry a glance then Gracia, her young brain understood something was wrong. She ran towards Winry and stopped beside the couch. She stood on her toes, watching the sleeping youth, her breathing raspy. "She's going to get better, right Mommy?"

"I'm not sure darling, only time can tell." She lifted Elysia up to get her to bed. Maes followed his wife, giving the Elric's some time alone.

Edward was furious, he sat in the chair beside Winry shouting threatening words at someone not present in this room, but Ed knew he was out there. Oh how he wanted to crush that bastards face. "I never should have left her alone Al." He looked at his brother and then at his mechanic, "I knew something was going to happen and I just left her."

"You are not the one to blame brother." Al reassured his brother the best he could.

"I know Al, that bastard that did this is!" Ed's voice darkened at the end and his hands clenched into fists. "When I find him, I'm going to kill him." He hated the word kill, it was so inhuman but in this very moment he didn't want anything else but to kill a specific person. It was then that Edward realized something – he would die before he let anyone close to him get hurt ever again.

Al walked over to his brother and laid a comforting gauntlet on his shoulder. "Calm down brother, our first priority right now is to get Winry back to normal, back to her old self." Al looked at Winry, the sweat droplets was easy to see on her pale skin. He took the watered cloth and brushed it gently over her damp skin before placing it on her warm forehead.

The sun settled and the blood red sky turned dark and to some trained eyes could say the color the sky held was like dried blood. The Elric brother's stayed with Winry, never leaving her side. She awoke a couple of times by a coughing fit but tried the best she could to choke the need to cough. Edward had given her a glass of water and was constantly brushing the sweat away from her face. Every time he did something for her she would smile at him, a weak smile, not the warm smile he was used to back in the old happy days. He knew she hadn't the strength needed to form words let alone speak, so she tried the best she could to smile, not letting her pain shine through her weak smiles. But Edward knew better. He knew she was suffering and couldn't do anything to help her through it if not… His face lightened at the idea that was forming in his brain; Doctor Marcoh could help. He had a Philosopher's Stone. Of course he would be willing to help Winry. But he had to wait, it was too late to do anything right now. If just that damn morning could arrive. He seated himself in the chair bedside Winry, letting his eyes shut just for a second.

Alphonse had left his brother to ask Gracia for more painkillers and when he returned to the living room he saw his brother sleeping. He was tired, Al knew that so he walked as quietly as he managed and laid a blanket over his sleeping brother. It was when he looked down, he saw Ed's hand entwined with Winry's and he smiled for the first time that dreadful day.

Dawn finally broke and the sun once again ruled the sky. Edward was about to leave to find Marcoh when he heard Winry's weak scream. He hurried over to her and saw a terrified look on her damp features. "Winry what's wrong?"

She tried to sit up but was pushed gently back by Edward, "It was only a nightmare Ed." At the look he sent her she quickly added, "The same as always, but with a little twist." Her weak voice was heartbreakingly to hear. Her face changed expression and Ed knew why, it had happened a lot during the night. He gently rubbed her back and looked up at Alphonse who sat in the couch by the wall.

A little while later Gracia came in to change Winry's bandages. The wound had been sealed by a thin coating which Gracia took as a good sign. Once she was finished she took Elysia with her to go shop some dinner. Edward seated himself beside Winry again with a grave look on his face.

Winry could see his usually arrogant golden eyes glaze over with a mixture of concern, exhaustion, and fear. "Sorry."

Edward's head snapped up at the sound of her voice, "What are you talking about Winry?" He rose from his seat and stood right before her, golden eyes shining with frustration, "You have nothing to be sorry for stupid."

"Edward don't call me stupid, Alchemy Freak!"

Ed frowned. "Who are you callin' a freak, Mechanic freak?"

"Edward I warned you…" She took a deep breath which she shouldn't have done. She clutched her chest in order to prevent the brutal choughs to erode. Edward took a step towards her but Winry held her hand up frizzing him at the spot, "I'm not done with you Edward." She looked up at him with angry blue eyes. "You should be glad I don't have my wrench here Ed. It's no wonder you always managed to create a fight. You just can't keep your big mouth shut!" She blinked a few times before setting her eyes on Edward's, a small smile playing weakly on her sweaty face before she added, "I think that's the only thing about you that's actually big."

Ed bristled at the comment, catching the underlying insult. "What's that suppose to mean?"

"You know very well what it's supposed to mean, idiot!" Winry snapped. "I'm so tired of your constant bickering and hot temper!"

"Well I'm tired of always having to protect you!" Edward shot back, his golden eyes shining with rage.

"I didn't ask for your protection Edward!" Winry replied viciously. "In fact I have never asked for it, not before and not now!" Winry could feel the need to hit Ed with something, something hard but what could she do? Lying her helpless. She sighed before pushing herself to rise carefully from the couch and walked unsteadily towards the door before any of the boys could react.

"Winry!" Al exclaimed in horror. "What are you doing?" He ran over to her and caught her before she hit the floor. He helped her back to the couch and laid the blanket over her.

"What were you thinking stupid?" Ed asked, his voice had lost all its rage from their bickering and held now a bit worry as well as frustration.

She scowled at him "I told you not to call me stupid Edward."

"I wouldn't have called you that if you hadn't been so stupid to try and stand up, let alone walk!" Ed retorted with a frown etched in his young features but his eyes gave him away. They still held a hint of concern which hindered Winry in shouting back. It was not like him to care so much like this so she let his comment slip this time. Instead she gently lay a hand on Al's battered armor, "Thank you Al. If it hadn't been for you I would probably reopened my wound and worried Gracia even more." She carefully brushed his armor in a warm gesture.

Edward once again took his place beside Winry and cleared his throat, getting both the mechanic and his brother's attention. "Winry I just wanted to ask you about last night. What happened to you?" His gaze fell automatically to her injured stomach. "Who did this to you?"

"First of all Ed I think you know who." She closed her eyes as unwanted memories flowed through her mind. "It was horrible I can tell you that much. You already know what he did to me and I can tell you he wanted so horribly to do more, but I'm sure he has orders not to do it."

"Who is he?" Edward asked, his eyes flashing dangerously.

She opened her eyes to look at her childhood friends with mixed emotions. "He's a Homunculus."

* * *

On the outskirt of Central Envy had just arrived and joined the others, a bit pissed off.

He picked up a stone and threw it at the nearest wall, making a hellish noise, "I'm so tired of letting her go all the time!" He slumped down beside Lust knitting his teeth. "Why?" He asked her with pure bloodlust shining in his eyes as they penetrated her calm ones. "Why all this waiting? I want her NOW!"

"Calm down Envy." Came a strong male voice, "We must wait for the right time my son."

Envy snorted, "I hate this constant waiting!" He picked up another rock and held it in his hand before crushing it as easy as breaking glass. "I just want to cause that little pipsqueak so much pain." He let the remains of the stone sift to the ground.

* * *

It was utterly silent in Mr. Hughes living room. Not a word was said in a long while. They each sat in their own world, each thinking different thoughts.

"A Homunculus." Edward broke the tense silence. "Then it must be Envy!" he knitted his teeth in order to control his anger. His palms had turned into fists and he struggled hard not to hit anything in pure rage. "That bastard!"

"What are we going to do now brother?"

"That's easy Al." Edward closed his eyes only to reopen them with fire dancing in his golden orbs "We're going to find him and make him pay for hurting Winry."

"Ed don't!" Winry argued before her voice became almost inaudible. "He'll kill you."

"Is that it? You think I can't beat him!" Ed spat harshly.

"Brother calm down." Al said, his voice stern yet placid. "Take it easy."

"Yes I do. You are too reckless and…"

"And short." He interrupted her. "I'm not small, goddamn it!" Edward shouted angrily.

"I never said that!" Winry yelled back. "Why do you always take things the wrong way? Do you have a brain disorder? She shook her head in frustration and shakily brought a hand to her stomach. In her argument with Ed she had ignored the aching in her wound but now she could feel not only aching but throbbing pain too. She could hear Ed's foul and vicious insults but the pain kept her from firing back. She knitted her teeth to stop a wince from leaving her mouth.

"Winry answer me!" She could hear he demand but the words were stuck in her throat.

"Winry?" That was Al's voice interrupting Edward's angry one. He sounded concerned.

'It's_ so typical of Al to worry about everyone else.'_ She thought, clutching the wound tighter.

"Is something wrong?"

"Does your stomach hurt?" Ed asked suddenly.

She looked at him, surprise evident in her eyes.

"What?" He asked slightly irritated.

"It's just that you are usually not this observant."

He frowned, "Well does it?"

She nodded slowly, still surprised. "Just a little bit."

"Remove your hand so I can look at it."

A weak smile flitted momentarily across Winry's face before she spoke, "It's not necessary Ed." But she removed her hand otherwise. They both blushed as she lifted up her shirt a little. Edward bent down and looked seriously at the deep gash covered with bandages which had turned bright red.

He looked worriedly at his brother before turning to Winry, a serious look on his young features, "I think it's reopened again."

Al gasped, standing up instantly. "But Miss Gracia is not here." He sent his brother a concerned look before he spoke, his childish voice a bit unsteady. "Brother what shall we do?"

"We have to change the bandages and stop the bleeding Al." Ed's voice held a maturity Winry had never heard in him. Sometimes it surfaced but for most of the time he was a witty teenager with a smart mouth and a height complex. Despite the pain she had to smile to herself. Winry was brought out of her musings when she felt an automail hand gently shaking her shoulders. She turned around to look up at Edward's face.

"We'll be right back just stay put okay?"

"Where could I possible go with a bleeding wound Ed?" She asked his back, teasingly.

They soon reappeared with a load of bandages. "Winry, could you hold your shirt up until we manage to stop the bleeding?" Al asked and if an armor could blush he would have a blush coloring his face right about now.

Winry smiled warmly to him, "sure I can Al."

Through the next hour a blush was evident on the three teenagers' faces as Ed and Al changed Winry's bandages as carefully as they managed. Winry pushed herself to not give away her pain whenever they put too much pressure on the wound but sometimes a wince escaped her mouth.

"I'm sorry Winry," Edward looked at her with apologizing eyes, "We're soon finished."

Sometime later they all sat silently in the living room an awkward silent eroded the little room. Al was occupied reading an alchemy book, Edward was sending the sleeping Winry some worried glances whenever she tossed and turned restlessly.

"I'm sure she'll be back to normal in no time brother." Al said, trying to reassure his older brother.

"I'm not so sure she ever will be the girl we know from the old days back in Resembool Al." Edward replied, looking at his brother with a grave look in his golden eyes, "Not after all the dreadful encounters she has had with Envy."

"You may be right brother, but you need to remember that Winry is a strong girl and I know she can get through this and return to her old self." He walked over to his childhood friend and laid the blanket, she had pushed down to her thighs in her restless sleep, over her slim body again. "All she need is a little help through the hard parts, and we can give her the help she needs. I will be there for her and I know you will too brother. Just remember all she has done for us. She has faith in us and now it's our turn to have faith in her."

"Sometimes Al I'm not sure who's the oldest of us." He sent his brother a kind smile, "You're right, Winry's strong."

The next day Alphonse went to inform Colonel Mustang what had occurred two days ago since his brother didn't want to leave Winry's side. He was walking down the street when he spotted Second Lieutenant Jean Havoc sitting at the local café, smoking as usual.

"Hello Lieutenant Havoc." Al greeted as he walked over to the blond man.

"Hi Alphonse, I haven't seen you in a long while." Jean began, the cigarette dangling from his lips. "Are you and your brother still searching for the you know what stone?"

"Yeah we are, but what are you doing here?"

"I'm waiting." Havoc blew out a breath of smoke. "I'm waiting for my girlfriend Celares."

"Okay, see you later Lieutenant." Al raised his gauntlet and waved. "Have a nice day."

Havoc with his cigarette still dangling from his lip looked after Al, "I will and say hi to Ed from me." He blew out another breath of smoke and looked up as a black haired girl approached him. "Hi Celares."

"Hello Jean." She seated herself beside him gracefully before linking her light purple lips, "Why don't you tell me how's your day have been."

Without looking behind him Al continued towards Central HQ. He was pretty used to the people staring at him, but since he was a shy boy he didn't appreciate all the attention this huge armor got him. He never told his brother how he suffered in this suit of armor, without sensation and all human trades. He knew if he did his brother would feel even guiltier than he already does. But he had to say he really hoped to be back in his body soon. He looked up at the huge building that made up Central HQ and walked in ready to meet Roy Mustang.

Once outside Mustang's office he carefully knocked on the brown door to the Colonel's office. A few seconds went by before he heard Edward's superior's voice. He opened the door and stepped in. The table in front of Mustang's desk was occupied by the Colonel's staff. They all greeted Alphonse warmly when he passed them.

Mustang's face was grave as Al informed him about Winry and how they now knew that Envy was behind it all.

"I see, so you don't know what the Homunculi are planning?" Roy asked after Al finished explaining everything to the Flame Alchemist.

"No we have no idea what they are planning, but we are sure Winry's involvement in this case is crucial. They want her for something and I believe it's something big." Al began and took a breath even though he didn't need it. "The Homunculus Lust told me that I'm a candidate to something and I don't know what. She said you were too Colonel." He looked at Mustang before he added, "Envy said the same to my brother at the Fifth Laboratory. But I don't know why they want Winry."

The whole room was silent during Al's explanation and they all looked at each other with surprise as well as worry evident in their eyes. No one said anything in a long while, trying to comprehend what had just been said. Lieutenant Riza Hawkeye was the first to speak, breaking the tense silence. "I think we should have some officers protect Miss Rockbell in case something like this happens again."

"I agree with Lieutenant Hawkeye Sir." Sergeant Kain Furey said. "If the Homunculus wants Miss Rockbell that much, she needs some protection."

"Lieutenant Falman set Second Lieutenant Ross and Brosh on the case." Mustang commanded before turning to Al. "So, how did you and Fullmetal finish the job in Yous Well so quickly?"

Al rubbed the back of his head and sent the Colonel's a nervous smile, "Heh, we didn't actually complete it but Major Armstrong's working on it." He looked at Mustang's frowning brow before he added, "He said we should leave it to him."

"So that's why." Mustang said, lowering his brow to normal before a sly smile reach his lips. "Considering this is an emergency I can forgive him but tell your brother he owes me."

"I will Colonel."

"And Al," Mustang took a step towards the armored boy and added, his voice serious "Tell Fullmetal not to do anything reckless."

Al nodded before leaving Mustang's office. On his walk back to the Hughes' home he stopped to buy some flowers. He wanted to give Winry something nice and immediately thought of a new wrench or a tool of some kind but he remembered that Edward gave her one last time they visited. He laughed inwardly at the reason his brother gave her one in the first place. He wanted to get on Winry's good side before telling or rather showing her his destroyed Automail arm. It didn't do any good. He still got wacked in the head with his own gift. So instead of buying another wrench of doom he chose flowers. Even though his brother deserved every blow he got, Al still felt a little sorry for him. He knew his brother didn't think before he opened his mouth and therefore a fight with Winry was inevitable. All Al could do to save his brother's skull was to give Winry something soft to hit him with and flowers should do the trick. He thanked the browned her girl when she gave him the harmless violets. She smiled warmly at him before presenting herself.

"Hello I'm Penelope." She held out her hand for him to shake, "What's your name?"

Alphonse who stood frozen would have blushed madly if he still had his human body. With a shaky gauntlet he shook her hand gently, "I'm Alphonse."

"It nice to meet you Alphonse." She picked up a bunch of beautiful roses and went over to find a vase to put them in. When she got back she knelt beside some daisies and poppies standing in a vase on the floor and began sorting out the withered ones. "Is these violets for your girlfriend?"

Al couldn't help but stare at her delicate fingers working gracefully on the fragile flowers. He quickly averted his gaze when Penelope looked up at him, "No, it's for an injured friend." He managed to stammer out while rubbing the back of his neck with his free hand.

"Oh I see." She smiled shyly, a blush settling in her cheeks. "I hope to see you again Alphonse. It was really nice talking to you." She began working on the flowers again. "To be honest I really appreciate a kind guy like you. Ever since I started this little shop a couple of guys have come by to flirt with me. Every time I try to tell them no, but they just won't stop." Al could see something shine in her clear green eyes but before he could be sure of what it was Penelope brushed it away with a small hand. "To be honest I'm afraid of them. I don't mean to drag you into my personal problems Alphonse but it's really nice to have someone to talk to."

"What about your parents?" Al asked, "Can't you talk to them?"

"I don't won't to bother them and besides it's no use." She rose from the ground, her hands filled with daisies. She walked slowly over and laid them on the counter. "My dad left my mom heartbroken years ago and I haven't heard from him since. My mom still believes he will come back some day and refuses to let go of the past. She is getting sicker every day. The doctor says she hasn't got much time left." She tried to fight the tears that threatened to fall but was losing badly. She brushed away the stray ones before looking at him again. "They don't know what's wrong with her but personally I think she suffers from heartbreak. It's eating her away from the inside and I can't do anything to help her." The tears flowed freely from her jade green eyes. It was heartbreaking to watch.

Al walked over to the young girl and patted her back gently, "I'm so sorry Penelope."

"Thank you Alphonse. I really needed to get that off my chest." She brushed away the remaining tears and continued her work. "I'm sorry to bother you with that stuff."

"No, don't be." Al picked up the remaining flowers from the ground and gave them to her, "Sometimes you need to tell others about your problems. It's not good to let them boil up inside. And besides I want to be your friend."

"You do? I'm so glad." She turned around, her eyes not reflecting sadness anymore but happiness instead, "I want to be your friend too, Alphonse." She gave him her hand again and Al clumsily shook it. "You can call me Penny."

"Then you can call me Al."

Penelope's cheeks turned pink again and she quickly turned around and began making a beautiful bunch of daisies and poppies.

"What about those guys you mention? They don't hurt you do they?" Al suddenly asked a little afraid of her answer. He suddenly understood what his brother felt inside when someone mentioned Winry getting hurt. He didn't want anything bad to happen to Penelope. He had for the first time in years found a friend that didn't question him for who he was. Of course his teacher didn't, but she was more like a mother figure and his friends in the Military didn't ask questions but they already knew he was just a soul sealed in an armor, but Penny didn't.

"No they don't, not yet anyway." She hesitated, not wanting Al to worry but the way he looked at her made her spill the beans anyway. "They just keep forcing them on me even though I tell them no. They just won't stop. I'm afraid that one day or maybe today they will go even further." Her eyes brimmed with unshed tears again and before she managed to blink them away one tear escaped and ran down her pink cheek. Al gently brushed it away with his finger. His eyes locked with hers for a moment, observing all the emotions she kept hidden inside.

"I won't let them." She looked up at him, surprise and wonder visible in her green eyes. "I won't let them hurt you Penelope."

"Thank you Al." She took a step towards him and slung her slim arms around his chest, embracing him in a hug. "You don't know how long I've longed to her those words spoken out loud."

Al stiffened by the sudden embrace but relaxed quickly. Even though he couldn't feel he still felt the warm sensation of appreciation and love. It warmed his soul and he brought his big arms around her thin frame in a hug of his own. He had never actually hugged anyone before, not in this armor and he had to admit it felt good. They stayed like that a while, clinging to each other, breathing in the comfort the other brought with them before they shyly let go.

Penelope blushed bashfully and shyly tucked a strand of brown hair behind her ear. "Sorry."

"So," Al began, his voice a little shaky, "I suppose I see you again soon, right?"

"What about tomorrow afternoon?" Penny averted her eyes, cheeks still rosy, "You can meet me here then." She looked up and quickly added, "If you want to that is."

Al picked up the flowers he bought for Winry and sent Penelope a warm smile. "Of course I do."

"Bye, it was really nice to meet you Al."

"I can say the same to you Penny" He waved goodbye and when he had walked a couple of meters he turned around and saw her waving back at him, he smiled inwardly and called to her, "See you tomorrow."

"I can't wait." Her words drowned in her mouth as she saw him walk away. She quickly turned back to her work before people began staring in her direction but something was different. The atmosphere around her was somewhat lighter and Penelope found herself humming a song her mother had sung for her back when they were still a family.

Alphonse walked lighthearted down the road in a much better mood than he was in a couple of hours ago. This day had turned out to be a fantastic day after all. He walked smiling, up the stairs and held the door open for an elderly woman who thanked him in return, saying something about strange teenagers these days but Al didn't mind, not now anyway. When he opened the door to the Hughes family's apartment he was met with yelling. He easy recognized his brother's angry voice from Winry's irritated. They were at it again, spewing foul words and insults to each other. Al sighed before he entered the living room without being noticed by the bantering teenagers. Sometimes he wondered if they enjoyed yelling at each other since they never could have a normal conversation without starting something that involved yelling.

"Edward I'm so tired of your attitude!"

"Too bad!"

"Why can't you drink your milk for once?"

"Because it tastes like vomit!"

"What are you talking about? Milk's good for you! Drink it!"

"Forget it, I hate what I hate. It's not like I'm bad because I don't drink that crap!

"Geez, then this is the reason you'll always gonna be the size of a bean!"

"A BEAN!"

"Yes a bean." Winry answered calmly. "You gotta drink your milk Ed."

"No way in hell I'm gonna drink that crap!"

"Then I'm going to make you!"

"Just try!" Ed challenged, his golden eyes flashing angrily at the girl lying on the couch with a glass of milk.

Before anything else could go wrong, Al made his appearance known, "Brother calm down." He sat down in the couch by his brother with a loud thud. "I talked to the Colonel and he sat Sargent Broch and Second Lieutenant Ross as protection." He sent his brother what seemed to be a knowing look. "It's just like the time they were watching us isn't it brother?"

Ed nodded, "Yes it is."

"You were gone long Al, did something else happen?" Al looked surprised at Winry and averted his gaze downward, "Something good?"

"Well yes." Al began twinning his thumbs shyly, "I meet a girl today at the flowersh…" He stopped midsentence before rising and walked over to Winry, "Oh that reminds me, here Winry." He gave her the neatly arranged Violets before seating himself beside his brother again.

"They're beautiful Alphonse." Winry exclaimed, all anger gone from her voice, a happy smile played on her features. "Thank you very much."

Edward sent his brother a 'thank you' look. He clearly got the point with flowers instead of a new wrench or something hard. "What about the girl in the flower shop?" he asked out of curiosity, wondering what had happened to make his brother so cheerful.

"She was really nice and we became friends." Al told them, happiness shinning in his voice. "I'm going to meet her again tomorrow." He sat down in the chair besides Winry and picked up the book he read yesterday. "She's one of the first who didn't ask any questions." He murmured quietly.

"That's great Al." Edward caught Al's last words and frowned. He knew very well what his brother meant and a wave of guilt ran over him. He had to get Alphonse back his body quickly. He could see his brother's suffering clearly even though Al never complained about it.

"What's her name?" Winry asked, her blue eyes gentle. She too had heard Al's last comment. She felt sorry for the young boy she had known all her life. '_I can't imagine how much pain he must be in.'_ She thought as her eyes watch Al's eyes lit up when someone mention his new friend.

"Penelope." Al's eyes darkened again and his voice lowered, "She having a rough time, just like we had when mother died, brother. She's going through the same thing." His voice dropped even further, now barely a whisper. "Her dad left just like ours and her mother is slowly dying too."

"Oh Al, I'm sorry." Winry took his gauntlet in her small hands and squeezed softly. "I know you can help her through this Al."

Al looked at Winry and if he could cry he would have tears running down his cheeks right now. He wanted to hug Winry tightly for her warming words but instead he squeezed her hands in return. "Thank you Winry."

The afternoon come and went, Gracia changed Winry's bandages and was very pleased with Ed and Al's work. The wound had healed just fine and with a few days rest Winry would be back on her feet. As Edward and Al were in deep conversation Winry took the opportunity to finish the blueprint she never got time to finish. It was her newest masterpiece and when she got well enough to travel again she would take a trip to Rush Valley to get some special plates and parts. She was making this Automail for Ed. She knew it wasn't long before he broke the one she had just made him. So this new one she was going to make even better, much stronger as well as lighter.

"Winry, Al and I are goin… Winry!"

"It's no use brother" Came Al's childish voice from the chair. "She has gone into her own world again."

Edward walked up to the focused mechanic and gently shook her shoulder. "Earth calling Winry." She looked up at him with wide sky blues eyes. "Al and I are going over to HQ to talk to Colonel Sarcasm." He took a step back and picked up his red coat from the chair. "We'll be right back."

"Just be careful on your way there." She laid down the blueprint and sent Edward an stern look before she added, "And Al if your brother so much as opens his big mouth to someone on the road drag him back here if you must."

Ed who was about to open his mouth to spout some foul words was interrupted by his brother dragging him out the door, "I will Winry."

Once the door locked in place Winry threw of her blanket and began slowly but determined to rise from the couch. She was sick of just lying around all day and besides she needed to stretch her legs. But the real reason lied in her mechanic parts lying in her bag out in the hallway. She felt so restless and needed to work and one thing applied to her more than anything else: Automail. The perfect machinery just called out to her and what can a young dedicated mechanic do?

She moved unsteadily on shaky legs towards the entry, one step at the time. When she reached her destination she quickly bent down and gently lifted the priceless bag into her arms and began the walk back to the infamous couch but one thing was brighter, she now had the wrench of doom back in her position. The next time Edward opened his big mouth he would surely get a surprise that's for sure. She smiled to herself as she sat down again and picked up her favorite wrench and some other parts. She laid them on the desk before her and immediately began working.

"Brother are you sure Winry's going to be okay alone?" Al asked, looking at his brother as they walked down the road. "You know the Hughes' are gone for the weekend."

Edward came to an abrupt stop, "What! They're gone!" He looked at Al with surprise and sudden rage in his golden eyes. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"I thought you knew!" Al explained his bewildered brother. "I thought Miss Gracia told you too, that they were taking Elysia to her grandmother this weekend considering Winry's much better and all."

Ed turned around, "We have to go back now before Envy finds out we left her alone." He began running back with Al at his heels.

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you brother."

"It's not your fault Al." He sent is brother an understanding look and added, "You said it yourself, you thought they told me."

The trip back felt so much longer for the two teenage boys, well one boy and an armor. They just kept running past building after building with no sign of the apartment they wanted to see. Just as they passed a deserted alleyway a small voice called out making Al stop abruptly.

"Someone please help me!" Al turned around and peeked in the dark alley, only seeing something running fast towards him.

"Is something wrong Al?" Edward asked a bit worriedly. Something was not right. He was met with only silence. He looked at his brother and saw his tense position as he gazed into the darkness. "Al we don't have time for this."

Al stood tense, listening after the same voice he heard a few seconds ago. He could promise he had heard that feminine voice somewhere before. Then it hit him, "Penelope is that you?" Suddenly he could hear a loud thud and someone crashed into him. He looked down at a young brown haired girl shaking in his arms. He protectively drew her into an embrace, shielding her from the darkness. "Penny what's wrong?"

She looked up at him with big jade green eyes filled with fright. "It's them." Her voice was shaky, "They're following me."

Al understood right away who she meant and he could feel rage build up inside him. He looked down at the slim girl, eyes widen in rage as well as sorrow. The girl shivering in his arms were bleeding from her forehead and her cloths had been torn in many places. "What did they do to you?" He asked his, voice thick with concern. "They didn't… did they?"

She shook her head slightly, "No they didn't. But they would have if I hadn't managed to get away." Just then they could hear footsteps running towards them coming from the alley. Penelope stiffened in fright. Al's arms tightened around her as the two boys came in sight.

"So you are two who are after this girl?" Edward asked as he took a step in front of his brother and the stiff girl in his arms, his voice calm and controlled. "I can't believe such scum as you actually exists."

"Who are you!" One of the boys asked, no more like demanded.

"I'm Edward Elric the Fullmetal Alchemist."

"You can't be serious!" The oldest of the boys exclaimed forcing down a laugh. "Aren't you too small to even be in the Military?" He let out a laugh before he added, "Let alone be a State Alchemist!"

"You callin' me the Guinness book of world records kinda shorty?" Edward could feel his blood boil and wanted no more to punch this guy into next month.

"Calm down shorty and give us the girl."

That twisted the last nerve Edward could control. He took a step towards them, hands raised. But before he managed to clap them together to make an alchemic reaction Al stepped in the way. "Al, get out of the way!" Edward's eyes flashed dangerously, "I want to wipe that smirk of his face once and for all." But Al stood his place, not moving a muscle. "Alphonse!"

"Let me handle this brother." Al turned his attention back at the two boys before him. "I'm warning you, leave Penelope alone and get out of here, now!" He saw his brother open his mouth in a protest and added quickly, "If you even touch on hair on her head you will have to deal with us."

"We are so afraid of you." The youngest, black haired boy said teasingly. "What can a talking armor and a shorty do to possibly harm us?"

"That's it! You asked for it!" Edward clapped his hands together, changing his Automail hand into a spear as he ran towards the two boys. Al caught his brother's jacket just as he passed him, "Al let me go!"

"Don't overdo it brother." He clasped his hands together, making a blue light lit up the dark road. When the light died down the two boys were standing in a tight spot. Al had made the wall crumbled in on them and they were now stuck between two walls. "I think that will do it."

Edward sighed in defeat, "I never get my way."

"Remember brother. I told Winry I would stop you from open your big mouth and begin a fight." He walked back to Penelope and knelt down beside the trembling girl. "You're safe now."

She took his gauntlet in her shivering hands and squeezed it, "Thank you very much Al." She managed to stutter out. She then turned to Edward who stood a little away from them before eyeing the two boys stuck between the walls. "Thank you too."

"I didn't do anything." Ed sent his brother a slightly irritated look, "Al had all the fun."

Penny laughed at his comment, a shaky but clear laugh. "You're action did enough." Edward sent her a questionary look. but she just waved it off returning her attention back to Alphonse who was standing again. "It wasn't like this I wanted our second meeting to be."

"Al, I'm going back to Winry now." Ed looked at his brother and got a nod in return. "I think you should take Penelope to Mustang and explain what happened." He said his superior's name with the slightest hint of disgust before turning around, walking back to the Hughes' home.

"I see you later tonight brother." Al waved at his brother and saw Edward's hand raise from his side to wave back over his head as he continued down the road. He looked down at the young girl, taking one of her hands in his and squeezed reassuringly. "They're not going to hurt you again Penny." He gestured to the two boys trying to get out from their tight spot. "Let's go talk to Colonel Mustang he will help us throw these guys in jail."

They began walking down the road and Penelope walked closely to Al down the dark path. Al could see her tense body and how close she was to him. He felt a wave of sadness wash over him. "I'm sorry Penny." Her eyes widened in curiosity and surprise. "I'm sorry for breaking my promise to you." He carefully brushed away the stray strands hair from her face. "I said I would not let them harm you and I let you down."

She shook her head one more time before looking up at him in thankfulness, "No you didn't." She squeezed his hand tightly before adding, "You saved me now."

When Edward got back Winry was asleep, the blanket that covered her bare skin was tossed aside. Edward walked over to her, taking of his coat in the process. He laid it gently over her with a blush on his face. He saw her cuddled into the warm red fabric and he felt an urgent need to touch the young mechanic, but before he let into his temptation he turned around and settled down in the chair beside her. He spotted the table with all the Automail parts and shook his head in amazement at the blond mechanic's determination. He let his eyes glide over the messy table and spotted the infamous wrench. He remembered to well the feeling that damned wrench brought to his head. He wanted no more than to take that stupid wrench and throw it out the window but he couldn't. He knew why and somehow it bothered him a little but he was too tired to think about it now. Ed turned his attention back to the sleeping girl and before he knew it, sleep dragged him into unconsciousness. He fell asleep resting his head on his arms which was lying by Winry's side on the couch.

Alphonse returned later that night with a dead tired Penelope. He helped her into the room he and his brother shared and gave her his bed. She fell asleep the minute her head hit the pillow. When Al walked into the living room he just had to smile. His brother was sleeping peacefully with Winry's hand entwined in his own. They both had a dissolving blush coloring their faces. Al knew very well that his brother hadn't taken her hand in a conscious state and he could tell Edward cared more for the girl than he let on considering the only name Edward moaned in his sleep happened to be that of a blond mechanic they both know. Of all the feelings displayed on Ed's sleeping face one stood out in particular; longing. _'What could brother be longing for?'_ he thought as he watched the two teens sleep peacefully with the same pleased expression. He began reading but his thoughts found their way to a certain brown haired girl with summer green eyes sleeping upstairs. Even though he hadn't a physical heart in this armor he still could feel it beat faster with every thought of Penelope. He walked over to Ed and wrapped a blanket around his small frame. With one more look at his brother and childhood friend he went upstairs to check on Penelope.

* * *

"When is this plan of yours going to satisfy me?" Envy asked slightly annoyed. "I'm pretty tired of running errands for you, even though messing with the blond girl is a good time killer." He stood up and kicked another rock with brute force into the wall, making an awful noise. "I want the real fun to start!"

"Envy I'm pretty sure Father has it all going exactly as planned." Lust said, looking up at him with a mocking glint in her purple eyes. "You just have to be patient."

"You're patience will be rewarded my son, Envy the Jealous." A deep manly voice rang through the room.

"You haven't even told us the plan yet old man!" Envy's rage got the better of him and the little patience he had left had vanished in a blink of an eye. "I want to know what it is now!"

"You will know in time, just have in mind that we will soon be crossing through the gate." His words held so much authority and leadership that Envy couldn't find it in him to oppose him, not yet anyway. "And we need sacrifices." Father's voice rang through the corridors of the underground city.

Lust walked over to Envy and laid a hand on his shoulder, her voice calm and controlled. "Is that answer enough for you?"

Envy turned around furiously and walked away angrily without a word. He have had enough of those irritating Homunculi by now and needed some fresh air, and maybe someone to terrorize or kill, just for fun.

* * *

Winry opened her eyes slowly to adjust to the light inside the room. She sat up noticing a familiar red coat was draped over her. She looked down at the sleeping alchemist and blushed when she saw their hands entwined together. She carefully slid out of the couch and laid Edward's hand gently beside his head. She walked slowly out of the quite living room and into the bathroom where she ventured on taking a much needed shower. The warm water felt good on her clammy skin and after 15 short minutes she stepped out. Edward was still asleep by the time she returned to the living room. She picked up her wrench and Automail parts before leaving the room once more.

The house was completely quite except some minor noises of metal against steal originating from Mr. Hughes little workroom that he had told Winry to use whenever she liked. Winry worked as quietly as she managed for not to wake the young alchemist but sometimes the mechanic in her took over and it became a little too noisy.

She was connection some small parts to the port when she heard a light thud on the door. She already knew who was standing on the other side of the closed door and with an annoyed sigh she opened the door.

As she thought Edward stood there, his eyes looking sternly at her. "What in the world are you doing?"

"I was just getting some work done Ed" She brushed her bangs out of her face, leaving a trace of grease across her nose. "Nothing to get hot tempered about."

"For god's sake Winry!" He ran a hand through his golden hair in sheer frustration. "You are still injured."

A look of true surprise was etched in her features, her eyes grew big with wonder. "When did you begin to care so much Ed?"

Edward struggled for any words that could help him out of this situation with his pride still intact as he fiddled mindlessly with his black shirt. But before he could retort Winry walked by him and into the living room where she slumbered down on the infamous couch. Edward followed her and mimicked her previous actions. He could feel his cheeks warm up by their closeness but shrugged the feeling off. The tension in the air surrounding the two teenagers was almost touchable.

Winry offered the young alchemist a few glances. He was sitting a few inches away from her, his golden eyes looking at something far away. He was thinking about something, something she knew he would never tell her, but it was okay. She was used to this treatment by now, being always kept at an arm's length away. She sighed inwardly, attracting Edward's attention as she did so. She saw him looking at her with those golden depths of his. She turned to face him.

"What?" She asked rather sharply.

Edward's eyes changed from calm to angry in a blink of a second. "You don't need to bite my head off you know!" His tone matched hers in coldness. He shifted his gaze from her to face the wall that suddenly seemed very interesting to him. "Automail freak." He muttered under his breath.

"What was that Edward?" She stood up and placed herself in front of Edward's sight forcing him to return his attention back to her.

Edward had his eyes fixed on the blond mechanic as he repeated what he said in a smug voice before he too stood up.

"Who are you to talk Alchemy freak!" She didn't know what Edward had done to piss her off this time. To be honest she was a bit confused but his arrogance didn't better the condition of her newly fueled fire. She was really glad that she had placed her wrench safely in her pocket before leaving the workroom because she knew that it had to be used pretty soon.

"At least I'm not a gear head." Ed retorted, a smug smile filtered across his face. "And so damned annoying!" He added to his own satisfaction.

"Well, then I'm glad I'm not stubborn, reckless, immature, short tempered, violent, obsessive, rude, arrogant," She took a short break to inhale some air before she added. "And aggressive!"

Edward cringed at the verbal abuse he was receiving from Winry. Okay, so he was a little selfish when it came down to finding the legendary Philosopher's Stone, and stubborn. And he did tend to call Winry names from time to time. And maybe, just maybe he was a bit reckless and short tempered but he was certainly not immature!

His golden eyes flashed with obvious signs of irritation and the way he scowled, so deliberately it made it hard for Winry to look away. She was trapped like a bird in a cat's grasp, lost in his hypnotizing eyes. She caught herself staring intensively at his golden depths and quickly averted her gaze to look at his face but her eyes quickly found their way back up to his fuming depths. His raging eyes were much more impressive than her angry blue but she remembered that Edward had a lot of practice with his superior. A small smile found its way to her lips even though she was still a bit angry. She had never managed to be mad at Edward for a long period of time, never. He was easy to forgive even though he pissed her off at a daily basis. She was brought out of her musings by Edward's sharp voice. She concentrated on returning to look from his eyes to his whole face.

"Winry!" He yelled to get her attention. "You are so irritating!"

"Edward, you idiot!" she yelled, brandishing the wrench she picked out of her pocket in one hot-tempered fist. The same wrench he had given her and the same infamous wrench she used to hit him and dent Al's armor with.

"Don't call me an idiot, Automail junkie!"

"Alchemy geek!" She yelled at him with her wrench ready.

"Mechanic tomboy!" Ed yelled back. He knew it wasn't long before he met the damned wrench of hers but it always took him by surprise. He yelped when he saw the glint of metal coming at high speed towards him and a sudden blossom of pain attacked his forehead. He clutched his head, groaning as he tried to rub out the throb. "Are you trying to kill me?" He asked still rubbing the sore spot.

She stood there grinning smugly at him. She replaced the dreaded wrench of doom back in her pocket before she looked Edward in the eyes once more hypnotized by his golden depths. "You deserved it and you know it." She answered calmly.

"I did not mechanic addict!" He retorted irritated.

"Shrimp!"

"I'm not small, goddamn it!" Edward howled angrily, hissing when the pain in his skull grew worse. "I'm still growing!" he stopped rubbing his forehead and looked her in her blue eyes. "And by the way I'm taller than you." He said smugly, taking a step closer to prove his point.

It was then she realized it. He had grown taller than her. She had to look up at him now. She cursed inwardly for not noticing it before. Now she couldn't use that comment any longer since he would brag about being higher than her.

"You're right." She admitted. He gave her a surprised look. She smiled smugly at him before closing the little space between them. She looked up at him, feeling his warm breath at the base of her nose. "But you're still shorter than an average teenager at your age." Winry countered, starting a whole new argument about milk, stature, and shouting new set of nicknames at each other.

Al was the one stopping their ridiculous banter. He shook his head in annoyance at the two blond teenagers' way to show affection towards each other. "Out all the ways to show their deep feelings, they had to choose this." He said to himself before dragging his shouting brother towards the door. Separation was the only way to stop the flying verbal comments. He was glad they didn't hear his comment, if they did or should he say his defiling brother hear it he would surly hear about it deep into next month. Al ignored the protest his brother made as he continued to drag him out of the tense air filled room, leaving an irritated mechanic behind.

"You must be Winry." A soft voice came from the door not long after Alphonse had left, dragging his brother with him.

Winry turned around to see a thin girl with shoulder short straight brown hair and jade green eyes standing shyly in the doorway. Winry's angry fire slowly died down and she smiled warmly at the girl. "Who are you?" Winry asked softly. "I haven't seen you around here before."

"My name is Penelope." She introduced herself before shyly walking closer to Winry. "And it's no surprise you haven't seen me here, Al was kind enough to let me rest here after saving me last night."

Winry's eyes widen, "Saved as in a fight saved?" She asked feeling her heart speed up. Had the Elric brothers been in a fight yesterday night without telling her? She sat down on the couch and patted the seat beside her, signaling to Penelope to sit down.

"Yes, Alphonse and Edward saved me from two guys last night." She sat down beside Winry and looked at the older girl with green eyes. "I haven't been able to thank them for letting me stay here yet." She added and shyly placed a stray strand of her behind her ear. "It was nice of them to do that without knowing who I am. I met Alphonse earlier that day, by the flower shop I work at." She averted her gaze from Winry's blue eyes and looked on the same wall Edward had so continently looked at only moments before. "Alphonse was really nice to me." She added and blushed lightly pink.

"Oh, I see." Winry said after a moment of silence. "Yes that's sounds just like Ed and Al." She smiled to herself at the thought of the two brothers she knows so well, they always helped people in danger even if it risked them getting injured. But fortunately no one had been hurt so she wasn't going to nail the two secretive brothers about this one. "So Penelope was it?" She started. Penelope gave her a nod. "I'm Winry, Ed and Al's childhood friend." She held out her hand. Penelope took it and shook friendly.

"Nice to meet you Winry."

* * *

**A/N:** That's it for now folks. I hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it. Please take a minute of your time to review and tell if you like it, hated it or loved it. It would really make a stressed girl happy. And tell me if you want Penelope to stay in the story a few chapters more or if you don't like her. I know it can be irritating to get new characters into a story so please tell me what you prefere.

Bye for now! Take care!


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